Spanish actress Ana Obregón created controversy after admitting to using her dead son's sperm to conceive a child.
Obregón, who is now 70, sadly lost her son Aless Lequio García at just 27 in May 2020.
The shocking death came just after a cancer diagnosis, leaving her without her only child.
However, García had frozen his sperm, which allowed Obregón to welcome her late son’s child via surrogate in 2023, when she was 68.
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When the announcement was made, fans were taken aback when the actress admitted the child wasn’t hers, but belonged instead to her deceased son.
Obregón revealed all to the local news outlet Hola!.
“This baby girl is not my daughter, but my granddaughter,” she said.
“She is Aless’ daughter - and when she grows up I will tell her that her father was a hero, so that she knows who she is and how proud she should be of him.”
The child, who is called Anita, was planned to be conceived 'the day my child went to heaven'.
Obregón revealed her son had always wanted to be a father but was unable to do so before his death.
So, she took matters into her own hands and made him a father after his passing.
Obregón said: “We live our whole lives saying that we are eternal and nothing happens here. Suddenly, one day they tell you at 25 years old that you have an aggressive cancer.”
But parenthood (or grandparenthood) isn’t easy at her age.
She revealed to the outlet: “My house is now full of stuffed animals and toys. I even have a little ball pool where she makes me dive in.”
She also admitted that picking up Anita ‘hurts my back’.
Obregón said the baby had given her life new meaning, as she continued: “I was dead for three years from Aless' death until Anita was born.”
“You don't accept or get over the death of a child,” the actress added. “You end up accepting that you'll never be able to come to terms with their departure. Fortunately, Anita now fills my days.”
However, Obregón sparked online controversy after announcing the news to the world.
Pregnancies like this are banned in Spain, however, if the baby is conceived in other countries, they can be registered in Spain without an issue.
But people have been talking, as surrogacy is illegal in Spain and sperm samples can only be used to impregnate a widowed partner within 12 months of the person’s death with their permission.
Equality Minister Irene Montero called surrogacy a ‘form of violence against women’ as Presidency Minister Félix Bolaños said: “Women’s bodies should neither be bought nor rented to satisfy anyone’s desires.”
Obregón has responded to the backlash, stating: “There are criticisms and judgments. People can be judged, but it's impossible to live without empathy.”
She added: “I believe that when fathers and mothers put themselves in my shoes and in my soul, in my pain… As I say, I was the owner of my pain. Now, I am the owner of my revival.”
As politicians debated about the topic, others found no issue with it.
“I don’t think this is too weird. She didn’t use her egg. She used someone else’s,” one confessed.
Another added: “If I lost my adult child, I would consider fertilizing and adopting their child. Idk man. I love my kids. Can’t imagine losing any of them.”
Britt Jones