After receiving backlash for kissing her 5-year-old son Matteo on the lips, WWE Hall of Famer Nikki Bella has fired back at her critics.
During the Jan. 15, 2026, edition of The Brie & Nikki Show, co-hosted with her twin sister and former wrestler, Brie Bella, Nikki addressed her recent photo from Legoland that went viral for the wrong reasons. In the picture, which was posted on Jan. 6, 2026, she is seen kissing her son on the lips. She received heavy criticism for this.
“It's so weird. I mean, there were quite a few reasons why I turned my comments off on that post, and it just goes to show why I don't put my son on social media,” Bella explained. “It wasn't even that many comments, but it was enough to bug me where like, ‘I can't believe she kisses her son on the lips, he's 5,' and I'm like, dude, I can't believe you're so bothered by it and annoyed. That's crazy to me.”
At this point, Bella is done taking criticism from others about her kid. “This is why I don't post him,” she said, continuing, “because I love my kid to death and do you think I want to read this stuff about him?”
Still, she called the kissing controversy “annoying” and “just bothersome.” Bella explained that her son was so excited to see Lego Santa, and he initiated the kiss. Overall, neither Brie nor Nikki saw the big deal with the kiss.
“First of all, I love my son so much, and I feel bad if your kid wants to kiss you on the lips and you tell him no. I think that's sad because I don't know what that would do to them mentally,” said Bella. “In that photo that’s on the cover photo, Matteo, that was his first time seeing Lego Santa, just the Lego version. He got so excited, so the lady was just taking photos.”
