Collin Gosselin Says Refusing to Be Part of Mom Kate's 'Circus' Landed Him in Behavioral Facility

Collin Gosselin alleges that his mother, Kate Gosselin, institutionalized him because he refused to comply with her orders.

The former Marine spoke out about his childhood and being sent away to a behavioral facility during an interview with The US Sun in September 2025, which was recently published in full.

Collin said, “I questioned her about everything, and that came before the rebellion of me not wanting to be on camera and be a part of her circus,” referring to his reality TV star mother continuing the TLC show Jon & Kate Plus 8 after divorcing his father, Jon Gosselin.

“That questioning led to me later not wanting to be on camera, and that really killed her,” he added.

“Even as a 12-year-old, before I was sent away, I could start to consider both sides of things,” he said, before adding that he “really could look at things in retrospect.”

He also added that his mother might have been trying to save face by sending him away, as his refusal to be a part of the reality TV show became increasingly evident.

“I don’t know what reason it was, whether it was her reputation she was saving by sending me away from home,” Collin reflected during the interview.

He also wondered whether the fact that “maybe it’s easier to sign a work permit for seven children that are voluntary, instead of seven children that are voluntary and one that’s involuntary,” influenced his mother's decision to separate him from his family at that young age.

He added that there “are a lot of things to question there.”

Collin had also accused his mother of abusing him in the past and issued a challenge to take a lie detector test over his accusations of her locking him in the basement with zip-lock ties around his wrists and ankles, during his interview with The US Sun in October of last year.

The reality TV star responded to a social media comment on Monday, June 29, urging her to sue her son for defamation, saying, “I can’t bc [because] I’m a public figure. Rules are different unfortunately. Or I def [definitely] would!," per Page Six.

Kate had previously also issued a statement to People in 2023, saying, “My son Collin, whom I love with all my heart, has received multiple psychiatric diagnoses over the years,” which she believes is the reason behind his allegations.

“For the safety of myself, his brothers and sisters, and for his own well-being, he was placed in a facility following years of outpatient treatment which proved insufficient for his needs,” she continued.

The influencer also added that her son remains a “very troubled young man who continues to need a lot of help,” before concluding that his siblings and she are not “directly involved in his life due to his history of unpredictable behavior and violent tendencies towards us.”