Denise Richards made a quiet return to social media for the first time since her husband Aaron Phypers filed for divorce earlier this month, marking the end of their six-year marriage.

On Sunday, the 54-year-old actress honored her late mother, Joni, with a touching tribute on Instagram. 

‘Happy Birthday, Mom in Heaven,’ the former Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star wrote in the caption. ‘You would’ve been 72 today. We miss and love you so much.’

In the initial image, Denise is seen smiling brightly with her eldest daughter, Sami Sheen, sitting on her lap. Her mother is smiling next to them, holding her other granddaughter, Lola.

The second photo in the slideshow featured a collection of prints from Joni’s childhood and throughout her life. 

Joni sadly passed away in 2007 following a long battle with kidney cancer. She was 54. 

Sami, now 21, was among the first to show her support in the comments section. 

‘I love you so much mom,’ the influencer wrote beneath the post. 

Denise’s former RHOBH costar, Sutton Stracke, also shared a heartfelt message, praising the music Denise chose to accompany the slideshow: Gerry Rafferty’s 1978 track, Right Down the Line. 

‘Song choice. Love you! HBD to your mother,’ Stracke commented. 

The song is widely recognized as a love letter to someone who’s been a constant source of support through life’s highs and lows. 

This marks Denise’s first social media post since Phypers filed for divorce on July 7. 

The Wild Things star, who accused her estranged spouse of domestic violence and verbal abuse, was recently granted a temporary restraining against Phypers, 52.

According to court documents obtained by People, Richards alleged that Phypers would ‘frequently violently choke’ her, squeeze her head with his hands, tightly grip her arms, slap her face, slam her head into a bathroom towel rack, and ‘threaten to kill’ her. 

She also claimed he threatened to break her jaw and caused her ‘at least three concussions.’ 

Phypers has since vehemently denied the accusations. 

In a statement to People, he said: ‘Let me be unequivocally clear: I have never physically or emotionally abused Denise — or anyone. These accusations are completely false and deeply hurtful. Denise and I, like many couples, have faced our share of challenges, but any suggestion of abuse is categorically untrue. I have always tried to approach our marriage with love, patience, and respect.’

‘I ask for privacy as we navigate personal matters, and I hope that the public and media will refrain from spreading harmful and baseless claims,’ Phypers concluded.

In an interview with TMZ, last week, Phypers claims the actress was cheating on him, leading to the fight on July 4 that prompted him to file for divorce. 

 The businessman claims he found texts between Richards and another man on her laptop, including several selfies and affectionate messages like her wishing him ‘sweet dreams.’

He also claims other messages suggested Richards and the other man were planning a hotel rendezvous, with her trying to sneak him into her room.

Phypers claims he confronted Richards about the alleged affair, and they decided to remain together.

But a major July 4th weekend dispute ultimately prompted him to file for divorce.

Richards has claimed the altercation started when Phypers verbally abused her and demanded his phone.

Phypers says his phone was missing for over a day, and when he asked Richards about it, she allegedly hit and scratched him. He later found the phone smashed in the recycling bin.

He believes Richards smashed his phone because it had photos of the texts proving she had the alleged affair.

He claims Richards texted his mother that weekend, stating her intention to divorce him, which prompted him to file for divorce first.

Phypers filed for divorce July 7, citing irreconcilable differences.

While Richards has yet to formally respond in court to Phypers’ petition, which seeks spousal support, she has made serious allegations of abuse against him.

On Wednesday, the former actress asked a Los Angeles judge for a restraining order – claiming her estranged spouse had routinely been violent towards her during their marriage and gave her a black eye after becoming paranoid about listening devices concealed in potted plants.

Phypers has denied the claims, and says the black eye seen on Richards in a shocking photo included in her latest explosive court filing was actually the result of a drunken fall.

A judge granted a domestic violence restraining order against Phypers.

Phypers claims she sought the domestic violence restraining order to deflect attention from her alleged affair.

He reiterated that he did not physically abuse Richards, stating, ‘I did not hit my wife in the face, ever.’

He also claimed Richards ‘falls down a lot. And it’s embarrassing, and people know it’, after previously claiming the black eye was the result of a drunken fall.

The pair’s marriage was plagued by other issues as well.

Phypers shared photos from inside their shared home, showing the residence in disarray and littered with numerous items.

He claims that he and his family were burdened with the responsibility of caring for Richards’ properties and animals.

A source close to Phypers recently insisted to DailyMail.com that he has never raised a hand to Richards, and dismissed the allegations as lies.

The insider said: ‘This is consistent with the ongoing untruthfulness of Denise Richards who is trying to hide her alcohol problem.’

Referring to a photo of her with a black eye which she submitted as evidence in her petition for the restraining order, the insider said: ‘That photo was taken in winter 2022 and the fact is, she was drunk at the time and fell coming up the steps to Aaron’s clinic Q360.’

‘She fell and caught the corner of her eye on the stairs and then came up to the office where they treated her and put ice on it.’

‘There were lots of people in the office at the time, all of whom saw what happened. Aaron has never touched her and never would.’

Their divorce battle began two weeks ago, seemingly blindsiding Richards who had said publicly that she never wanted to go through a divorce again. 

Along with the filing, he asked for spousal support totaling $105,000-a-month and said his income was ‘zero’ following the closure of his clinic last October.

As a result, he relies on his wife’s income which he claimed in court was $250,000-a-month, most of it earned via OnlyFans and her now canceled reality show Denise Richards & Her Wild Things.

Richards admitted to facing challenges in her marriage earlier this year during an episode of her reality show Denise Richards and Her Wild Things.

The mom-of-three said in a March episode of the E! reality show: ‘It’s not easy being married to me, but this is it, I’m done.

‘I’m never getting divorced again. Even if we hate each other, I’m not gonna f****** get divorced.’

For his part, Phypers chimed in that they might even live in separate houses, but insisted, ‘We’re not gonna hate each other.’

Richards was previously married to wild child actor Charlie Sheen who she divorced in April 2006 while pregnant with their second child.

Along with divorce papers, she also slapped Sheen, 59, with a restraining order banning him from coming any closer than 300ft from his ex-wife and daughters.

In 2010, she was awarded sole legal custody of their children with sources citing ‘marital turmoil, sobriety issues, and criminal problems’ for the decision.

The latter refers to Sheen’s arrest on Christmas Day 2009 for assaulting his third wife Brooke Mueller in an Aspen, Colorado, property during a festive break.

Sheen was later convicted of misdemeanor assault and slapped with 30 days in rehab, 30 days of probation, and 36 hours of anger management.

Richards moved on with her life and adopted a third daughter Eloise in June 2011 and started dating Phypers in December 2017 before marrying him less than a year later in September 2018.

A year after tying the knot, Phypers adopted Richards’ daughter Eloise.