Kristen Bell Backlash Over 12th Anniversary Caption

Kristen Bell marked her 12th wedding anniversary with Dax Shepard by posting an Instagram photo with a caption quoting Shepard: "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 remark sparked significant backlash as tone-deaf and insensitive, especially because the post coincided with Domestic Violence Awareness Month, with critics saying it normalizes intimate partner violence and femicide. Other followers and some celebrity friends defended the couple as sharing a dark, inside joke consistent with their public persona; Bell has about 15.8 million followers. Commenters on platforms including Reddit and Instagram called the caption misogynistic, the controversy went viral, and Bell restricted comments on several posts though the anniversary photo and caption remain live. Observers say the couple’s longstanding habit of publicly sharing private relationship details amplified the negative reaction.