Selena Gomez used to be "very protective" of her parents when it came to their love lives.

Selena Gomez

Selena Gomez

The 25-year-old star's parents Ricardo Gomez and Mandy Teefey - who were teenagers when they welcomed her into the world - split when she was five, and the 'Bad Liar' hitmaker admitted she could be very selective about who they were dating.

Asked about her dating intuition, she told 'Entertainment Tonight': "I like to say [that I have] decent discernment. But I come from a separated family, so I used to get very protective over my parents when they would date."

Now, her mother and father have both gone on to fall in love and expand their families, meaning Selena has become a role model for her half-sisters, five-year-old Gracie Elliot Teefey and three-year-old Victoria Gomez.

She added: "[Gracie's] my biggest supporter. It's awesome."

The 'Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation' actress also admitted her eldest sibling would be there to watch her on the big screen in the animated sequel once it gets released.

She said: "She's just there to have a good time. I don't think my sister overthinks anything and that's what I love about her. She enjoys it. She's excited about life."

Meanwhile, Selena's mum recently defended her daughter and revealed she is "ignoring" comments on social media after Stefano Gabbana claimed she was "so ugly".

The Italian designer - who is the co-founder of the luxury fashion house Dolce & Gabbana - slammed the star on Instagram recently, and Mandy later revealed her daughter isn't interested in Gabbana's harsh comments, and is moving past the criticism.

She told People magazine: "When someone has a desire to speak out about something by using a word so hateful, we ignore it."

The designer had taken to the comments of an Instagram post by The Catwalk Italia earlier this week, which showed Selena in a montage of red dresses.

Gabanna commented in Italian: "è proprio brutta", which roughly translated means "she's so ugly."