Dax Shepard had fans buzzing after reuniting with his ex-girlfriend on his podcast — just as Kristen Bell’s controversial anniversary post sparked outrage.
Celebrating their milestone on Saturday, The Good Place actress, who shares two daughters with Shepard, wrote, ‘Happy 12th wedding anniversary to the man who once said to me: “I would never kill you. A lot of men have killed their wives at a certain point. Even though I’m heavily incentivized to kill you, I never would.”‘
The bizarre caption quickly backfired, with furious fans slamming Bell for making light of domestic violence — especially during National Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
With that backlash still simmering, Shepard invited his ex-girlfriend Briegh Morrison onto Monday’s episode of his Armchair Expert podcast — and fans couldn’t get enough.
Morrison, who dated Shepard for nine years and shared an open relationship with him before his marriage to Bell, charmed listeners from the moment she started speaking.
‘She’s a delight, what a pleasure to get to “meet” her,’ gushed one fan on YouTube, while another wrote, ‘Did we all just collectively fall in love with Briegh?! I know it can’t just be me!’
Dax Shepard (R) had fans buzzing after reuniting with his ex-girlfriend Briegh Morrison (pictured L) on his podcast — just as Kristen Bell ’s controversial anniversary post sparked outrage
Furious fans had slammed Bell for making light of domestic violence — especially during National Domestic Violence Awareness Month – in her post; (pictured Oct. 16)
Others couldn’t help but comment on Shepard’s romantic track record.
‘Imagine fumbling Briegh and then somehow ending up with KB?! The man has both impeccable taste and impeccable luck,’ one fan joked.
But not everyone was swooning.
One fan admitted they were a little uneasy with how comfortable Dax seemed around his ex.
‘I don’t think that if my husband mentioned his ex even 1/4 of the amount of time Dax does, he would be my husband anymore,’ they wrote.
Others came to Shepard’s defense, insisting there was nothing inappropriate about the reunion.
‘Dax wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize his relationship to Kristen or his daughters,’ one supporter commented.
The frenzy came just hours after Kristen faced major backlash over her post.
With that backlash still simmering, Shepard invited his ex-girlfriend Briegh Morrison onto Monday’s episode of his Armchair Expert podcast — and fans couldn’t get enough
Morrison, who dated Shepard for nine years and shared an open relationship with him before his marriage to Bell, charmed listeners from the moment she started speaking; (Morrison with husband Brad Winderbaum in 2025)
The social media reactions were swift
‘Timing and tone really matter, especially with sensitive topics,’ one X user wrote.
Another added, ‘Kristen Bell thinking it was OK to post this to her 16 million followers during Domestic Abuse Awareness Month — when a girl or woman is killed by a man known to them every 10 minutes — is insane.’
Instagram users echoed that outrage in the comments under her post.
‘That’s a wildly sad and insensitive thing to say considering it’s domestic violence awareness month and thousands of women have died at the hands of the man they trusted…’ one wrote.
‘This is tone-deaf and offensive during any month,’ another fumed, while a third added, ‘Kristen, there’s no way you posted this during Domestic Violence Awareness Month.’
Others went even further, warning, ‘Not funny at all. What kind of man says that to his wife? Oh wait, I know exactly what kind. Get out now, Kristen.’
‘Domestic violence isn’t a joke,’ another person commented, while one wrote bluntly, ‘Congrats on 12 years, but worldwide, a woman is killed every ten minutes by her partner. #StopViolenceAgainstWomen.’
A longtime fan added a more measured plea: ‘Please don’t joke about domestic violence. It’s something real that lots of people suffer on a daily basis. The text could be triggering for victims.’
Another commenter pointed out grim statistics: ‘The number one cause of death for pregnant women is their partner. Super tone deaf, hun.’
Despite the backlash, Bell has not yet responded to the criticism or deleted the post.
Over the weekend, the Nobody Wants This actress, 45, shocked fans with a jarring caption under a sweet photo with her husband, 50, to mark their 12th wedding anniversary
‘Happy 12th wedding anniversary to the man who once said to me: “I would never kill you. A lot of men have killed their wives at a certain point. Even though I’m heavily incentivized to kill you, I never would,”‘ the Veronica Mars alum wrote beneath her post
The Daily Mail has reached out to her representatives for comment, but have not heard back, at this time.
The couple first met in 2004 at a friend’s birthday dinner, though Bell once admitted her first impression of the Armchair Expert host wasn’t exactly love at first sight.
‘That guy from Punk’d talks so much. Woah, he’s chatty,’ she recalled during a June 2024 appearance on SiriusXM’s Where Everybody Knows Your Name with Ted Danson & Woody Harrelson (Sometimes). ‘We had no chemistry that night.’
They reconnected three years later at a hockey game — and that’s when sparks flew, thanks to a surprisingly unsanitary (and bold) move.
‘He asked me for a piece of gum,’ Bell explained. ‘I said, ‘No, just this,’ and kind of coyly took it out of my mouth. And he grabbed it from me and goes, ‘I’ll take it.’ Then he put it in his mouth, and I was like, this guy wants to f**k me. After that, I was absolutely smitten.’
Within minutes, the post was flooded with angry comments accusing the actress of making light of intimate partner abuse – during Domestic Violence Awareness Month, no less
Still, things didn’t take off right away as Shepard got cold feet and briefly ended things, only to call her four days later, admitting he’d made ‘a big mistake.’
They’ve since become one of Hollywood’s most outspoken couples, known for their candid discussions about therapy, parenting and marriage.
Bell has also gushed that every new discovery about Shepard ‘leaves [her] more and more impressed.’
‘He’s so protective, he’s so loyal, he’s curious, he’s constantly researching things to get new perspective, he challenges himself, he’s self-critical,’ she said.
The pair tied the knot in 2013 after Bell re-proposed to Shepard, exchanging vows in a low-key ceremony at a Beverly Hills courthouse.
They now share two daughters, Lincoln, 11, and Delta, 9.
