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Willow Smith and Moises Arias: Singer, 13, criticised after she is pictured lying in bed with 20-year-old actor

The black and white image, posted by Miley Cyrus' former co-star, quickly went viral after it was posted on Instagram earlier

Jenn Selby
Tuesday 13 May 2014 16:30 BST
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Will Smith and Jada Pinkett-Smith’s hands-off parenting approach has once again been called into question, after their 13-year-old daughter, Willow Smith, was pictured lying in bed with a 20-year-old actor.

The black-and-white shot of the young singer, casually reclining with topless actor Moises Arias, was initially posted via his Instagram account.

Arias, who rose to fame starring opposite Miley Cyrus in Hannah Montana, has since deleted the image.

However, not before hundreds of his fans reposted it via various social media channels, or Smith’s behaviour – though appearing innocent – was deemed by online critics to be too mature for a newly teenage girl.

“Umm......Will And Jada Come Get Your Child!,” one follower wrote, posting a link to the picture.

“As a parent, I don't think I'm ok with this,” another added.

However, not all were so offended:

Some questioned why the image had been the last critical straw:

While others were just plain abstract about the whole affair:

Needless to say, this isn’t the first time Willow Smith’s antics have caused a media stir: the young star has been attracting criticism for dressing and producing music far beyond her years since her debut single, "Whip My Hair", debuted in 2010, when she was just nine. Just last week, she drew criticism for wearing cannabis leaf socks as she headed out of a sushi restaurant in Los Angeles.

Fresh Prince of Bel Air star Will Smith and actress Jada Pinkett-Smith’s alternative parenting methods have also raised eyebrows in the past.

Speaking of her decision to “let” Willow shave her head at the tender age of 12, Pinkett-Smith said:

“The question why I would let Willow cut her hair, first thelet must be challenged.

“This is a world where women [and] girls are constantly reminded that they don't belong to themselves — that their bodies are not their own, nor their power or self-determination. I made a promise to endow my little girl with the power to always know that her body, spirit and her mind are her domain.

“Willow cut her hair because her beauty, her value, her worth is not measured by the length of her hair. It's also a statement that claims that even little girls have the right to own themselves and should not be a slave to even their mother's deepest insecurities, hopes and desires.”

The parents were famously “divorced” by their 16-year-old son, Jaden Smith, for his 15th birthday in 2013.

“He says, ‘Dad, I want to be emancipated,’ I know if we do this, he can be an emancipated minor, because he really wants to have his own place,” Will Smith told The Sun last year.

UPDATE: Mum Jada Brands Critics 'Covert Paedophiles'

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