Jon Gosselin Denies That Son Collin Has Special Needs

Jon Gosselin is denying claims first made by his ex-wife Kate Gosselin that their 14-year-old son Collin has “special needs.”

In 2016, the Kate Plus 8 star revealed that Collin, then 12, was living at a residential facility for children who have special needs, but after the teen moved in with his father recently, Gosselin is denying that is the case.

“He is not on any spectrum or special needs,” Gosselin responded to a follower who commented on his Christmas day photo with “I’d love to know if he actually has ‘special needs,’ or if he just didn’t deal [with] Kate’s BS like we all suspect. Either way, he’s home! And he looks happy.”

Gosselin, who also lives with 14-year-old daughter Hannah, was just awarded sole temporary physical custody this month of Collin after his ex did not show up to a court hearing in their custody case. The former Jon and Kate Plus 8 couple split in 2009 in what would precede a messy divorce, and 14-year-olds Leah, Alexis, Joel and Aaden and 18-year-old twins Cara and Madelyn still live with mom Kate.

Gosselin may have mended fences with Hannah and Collin, but he told Us Weekly earlier this month that his relationship with his other six kids remains “volatile,” and that their last visit was “not good.”

“It was just volatile and a lot going on,” he admitted. “It was just not a good time. Like, forced custody and all that kind of stuff.”

Nonetheless, he’s happy that Hannah is keeping up her relationship with her siblings.

“[Leah, Alexis, Joel and Aaden] aren’t talking to me, but they’re talking to Hannah. I don’t get involved now with what the kids … it’s what the kids want to do,” he told Us. “If they don’t want to talk to me, that’s fine, as long as they keep up with their sibling connections. Eventually, if they come around and they want to talk to me, that’s cool.”

In the future, he said, he is staying realistically optimistic about what his relationship with the other six children would be.

“It wouldn’t have to be all lovey-dovey. Just like, ‘How you guys doing? Where are you going to college?’ Maybe call me for advice. Like, hey, I’m thinking about going to this school, college, whatever,” he explained. “With Madelyn and Cara, because when I think back, like, I was part of their life a little, and then all of a sudden there was nothing, you know what I mean? And just with the other four, just like, ‘Hey, you guys wanna go bowling or something?’ So we can spend time all together… Just to start off small.”

Photo credit: Instagram/Jon Gosselin