What Erika Jayne's Relationship With Her Son Tommy Zizzo Is Like Today
As longtime fans of "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" will know, Erika Jayne has always been fiercely protective of her son, Tommy Zizzo, whom she shares with her first husband, Thomas Zizzo. In more recent years, however, she's shared more about him with the world. One thing we've learned is that they're super close — and while their dynamic has changed as he's grown up, she couldn't be happier about the bond they share today.
Jayne's protectiveness of her only child was on full display in Season 7 of "RHOBH." After Eileen Davidson tried to step in to put a slight by Dorit Kemsley into perspective — suggesting that Jayne was reacting as someone would if their child had been harmed — Jayne went into full-on mama bear mode for her police officer son. "Eileen, your kid doesn't put on a uniform every night, and put his life on the line for people he doesn't know ... Don't ever talk about my kid again," she warned (via Bravo). The "Pretty Mess" singer apologized soon after, explaining to Davidson that any scenario involving her son's safety was incredibly triggering.
In the years since, Jayne has made a concerted effort to keep her son's life private. As she told Andy Cohen during an episode of his "Radio Andy" show, "I don't care if he's an adult and wears a gun and a badge ... he's still my boy." However, the things she has shared about their relationship are adorable, to say the least.
Tommy supported Erika throughout her separation drama
Many may remember that in the midst of Erika Jayne's separation from Tom Girardi, the latter experienced a break-in, and Tommy Zizzo had been on hand to help his stepfather. Girardi wasn't the only one to receive Zizzo's support during that time, though. Speaking on Bravo's "The Daily Dish" podcast in 2022, Jayne shared that her son had been by her side throughout the separation and all the legal woes she faced post-split.
"The silver lining to all of this s*** is that our relationship is stronger. My son and I, we've really come together," she said in the interview. Jayne added that in addition to being close throughout the experience as mother and son, she had also loved hearing his take on everything, as a full-fledged adult. However, she added that while his adulthood meant their relationship had got to a point where they spoke like friends, they were mother and child first and foremost. "I am [and] will forever be his mother. And, you know, I still have to cook when he comes over," she told the podcast.
Further than that, Jayne has kept the details about their relationship private — and we're not anticipating that changing any time soon. During her interview on "Radio Andy," she confirmed that she's committed to doing whatever it takes to honor his preference for privacy. "He didn't choose this life, I chose this life," she explained.
Erika respects Tommy's privacy, but she has posted about him
Erika Jayne generally prefers keeping her son and the relationship she shares with him out of the press. However, back in 2020, the diamond holder surprised her followers by sharing a glimpse of him to Instagram – in uniform, no less.
"People say we look alike," she'd written in the caption. Sure enough, the pic showed that Zizzo really does look just like his reality star mother. True to form, though, she took measures to prevent him becoming too much of a talking point. "No you can't comment," she joked, and opted to disable comments on the post. Given how out of the norm it was for Jayne to have shared him in the first place, we'll say that's fair enough!
As for what had prompted the uncharacteristic post, Jayne shared on "Radio Andy" that she was proud of him and his role as an essential worker during the pandemic. "He's a very fine young man," she gushed. She doesn't have any regrets about sharing that with the world, and at the time of the "Radio Andy" interview, Zizzo hadn't objected. Perhaps that's why, a few months later, she shared a sweet throwback picture to Instagram of a young Zizzo on vacation in Tanzania. "This trip was one of our favorites," she wrote. Again, comments were disabled. Jayne may share snippets of her son on occasion, but she'll always be a protective mama.