In the realm of Hollywood relationships, Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard stand out as a beloved pair.

Since their relationship began in 2007, these A-list stars have captivated fans with their humorous interactions, candid discussions about the challenges of marriage, and openness about parenting.

However, Bell, who frequently uses her immensely popular Instagram account to offer glimpses into their personal life, may have crossed a line this week with a post celebrating their 12th wedding anniversary.

Captioning a photo of them hugging on a bed, Bell 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 post from Bell, who is 45, drew criticism for its timing, as followers were quick to point out that her ‘joke’ about Shepard came during Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

Her comments were swiftly criticized as ‘tone-deaf’ and ‘insensitive’ by many in the comment section.

Some also remarked that this isn’t the first time Bell and Shepard have stirred controversy with their remarks about their relationship.

From honest remarks about their daughters’ bathing habits to quips about being in an open relationship, Bell and Shepard have seemingly made a habit of oversharing in podcasts and interviews – even if what they say is often made in jest.

But behind closed doors, the last 12 years of marriage have apparently been an uphill battle for the couple, who share daughters Lincoln, 12, and Delta, 10. Inside sources have told the Daily Mail about ‘volatile’ fights and Shepard’s addiction struggles that have served to threaten their relationship.

At first, the actress’s Instagram post seemed to be just another joke. That’s why, according to one insider who spoke exclusively to the Daily Mail, Bell likely ‘didn’t realize’ there would be backlash to her anniversary tribute.

‘Her humor can go dark and sometimes be funny. But then she is also oblivious to people’s feelings and will say anything at any time,’ the insider said.

‘The post was funny to her and Dax, but she didn’t realize the backlash that was coming. It was tone deaf, but at the end of the day, the people that know Kristen know that is the person she is.’

However, a second insider has claimed there may be some truth behind her candid caption.

‘Kristen and Dax are both pretty volatile people and can blow up over the smallest issues,’ the second source exclusively told the Daily Mail.

‘Sometimes Kristen or Dax will say something they think is a fun dig and the other one gets offended. They have a strange dynamic but it seems to always work out in the end.’

In the 2018 debut episode of Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast, for which Bell served as his first guest, the actor admitted he and his wife were ‘bickering’ and ‘being impatient with each other’ throughout the interview.

At one point, Shepard did an impression of Bell nagging at him, to which the actress responded by calling him ‘annoying’ and noting that he was ‘talking over’ her.

While it is natural in relationships for couples to bicker, our second source shared that Bell and Shepard ‘often don’t talk for days’ after a major blow-up.

However, they still manage to ‘keep their kids in the dark about their arguments,’ the source said.

Back in 2020, the pair had a fight so intense she ‘blacked out’ and didn’t talk to her husband for three days.

She detailed the ‘incredible… top of the lungs screaming’ fight she had with Shepard during an appearance on Justin Long’s Life Is Short podcast.

‘It was about the things around the house that I felt I needed help with. We have a relationship where you are supposed to be able to say I need your help with this,’ she explained.

‘I left a note and I was like, “Hey dad! Would you mind taking the two towels in the dryer and folding them” and then like one other thing,’ Bell recalled. 

‘I thought, “That’s 10 minutes of work, I can say that.” At that point, the house [work] was getting to be a lot for me. The keeping up with the mom stuff, the shoes being outgrown, all of that.’

But Shepard felt the note was ‘controlling,’ and they launched into a screaming match ‘about how nobody does anything for anybody else,’ Bell said.

‘Then we both blacked out and got into a fight and I don’t actually remember what happened but what transpired was a lot of volume, a lot of harsh words being thrown around.

‘I grabbed my pillow and stomped down the hall and I sleep in the front room and I’m crying. We don’t talk for three days.’

Of course, refusing to speak to each other as parents of two young children may come with its own set of difficulties. 

But Bell explained during the podcast episode that they managed to discuss the ‘logistics’ of getting their daughters to school in the midst of their fight.

Eventually, the couple made up when Shepard agreed to adopt a rescue dog named Frank, which Bell said had caught her by surprise considering he was allergic to dogs.

‘I didn’t get an apology, but I got a dog!’ she added.

Like many other couples, Bell and Shepard have been in couples therapy on and off for the last decade. In fact, a third source told the Daily Mail that therapy has been a saving grace for their relationship.

‘Couple’s therapy has been the main reason that they haven’t broken up,’ the third insider said.

‘Dax has a big past with addiction and going to therapy has been the addiction he needs in his life. It gets him to deal with Kristen and vice versa. To stay together, they have to continue doing that.

‘Their relationship is something they always have to work on, but they root for each other.’

Appearing on Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson’s podcast in June 2024, Bell revealed she had gone to therapy with Shepard ‘right off the bat’ – that is, as early as the ‘first six months’ of dating.

‘We went to therapy a lot our first and second year, because we’re both really stubborn,’ she said.

For his part, Shepard has previously credited therapy with allowing himself and Bell to ‘coexist’ in their relationship. 

Quarantining together during the COVID-19 pandemic brought even more issues to the surface, with the pair increasingly ‘at each other’s throats.’

‘Dax and I, when we started this pandemic, were at a point in our marriage where we definitely needed a little therapy brush-up,’ Bell told People in January 2021.

‘Every couple of years, we’re like, “We’re being very antagonistic towards each other,” and we don’t want that. 

‘We go back to therapy and figure out what I’m not doing that’s best for you and what you’re not doing that’s best for me, and how we can serve this team goal better. It’s been incredibly helpful.’

Surely, therapy can be a helpful tool in navigating a relationship that is in the spotlight.

While Bell rose to fame in the early 2000s as the titular lead in teen drama series Veronica Mars, it was her 2013 role as Anna in Disney’s Frozen, as well as Eleanor Shellstrop in NBC’s The Good Place, that made her a household name.

Just last year, Bell earned her first Emmy Award nomination for her performance in the Netflix romantic comedy series Nobody Wants This, which premieres its second season on October 23.

In addition to conversations about the couple’s arguments, rumors have swirled about their status – including since-denied speculation that Bell and Shepard are ‘swingers.’

Shepard dispelled rumors that he and Bell have an open relationship when he appeared on The Drew Barrymore Show in September 2024.

‘There was the most exciting tabloid story that we were Hollywood swingers and we hosted swing parties – this was in the tabloids,’ Shepard said at the time. 

‘My favorite part of that happening was we got a lot of texts from other friends of ours saying, “How could you not have invited me to the swinger party?”‘

Still, that hasn’t stopped the couple from joking they’re in a ‘three-way marriage’ with Shepard’s podcast co-host and their former nanny, Monica Padman.

‘Well, we were in a three-way marriage,’ Padman explained in 2021, when asked by Jimmy Kimmel if she was ‘the third wheel in Dax and Kristen’s tricycle of love.’ 

When Kimmel pressed to find out whether there was anything sexual in the arrangement, Dax replied, ‘Unfortunately not.’

Together, Padman and Shepard launched their popular Armchair Expert podcast in 2018. 

Although the podcast typically focuses on in-depth conversations with celebrity guests, Shepard has also used it as a platform to speak openly about his sobriety journey.

Shepard, who first got sober from drugs and alcohol in 2004, candidly revealed during a 2020 episode that he had relapsed after 16 years.

He told fans he was just seven days sober at the time after he had been taking painkillers following a motorcycle accident.

He admitted he felt immense guilt about hiding ‘this enormous secret’ and expressed regret for ‘gaslighting’ both Bell and Padman.

‘I felt so terrible about the lying,’ he said at the time. ‘I was just very scared and I felt very, very lonely.’

Despite his relapse, Bell has continued to support her husband throughout his 21-year journey.

And in true fashion for the star, she took to Instagram to celebrate his most recent sobriety milestone.

‘This is what 21 years of sobriety looks like,’ Bell captioned an Instagram carousel, which featured a photo of the couple kissing, as well as snaps of Shepard hugging their daughters.

‘Lots of hugging. Hugging everyone and everything. Hugging life. Thank you for getting sober, @daxshepard. I am eternally grateful to have you. We all are.’

The Daily Mail has contacted representatives for Shepard and Bell for comment, but has not heard back.