Kristen Bell appears to be laying low following the backlash she received from her anniversary tribute to her husband, Dax Shepard, over the weekend.
Bell was scheduled to appear on the Today show Wednesday to promote the second season of her Netflix romantic comedy series, Nobody Wants This, but did not show up.
Instead, her co-star, Justine Lupe, attended the taping of the talk show by herself, not mentioning Bell’s absence.
The Frozen star is still slated to attend Wednesday evening’s screening and conversation of Nobody Wants This season two at The 92nd Street Y, New York, hours before the episodes hit Netflix.
The Independent has contacted Today as well as Bell’s representative for comment.
Bell’s missed appearance came a few days after she received criticism for the Instagram post she made for her wedding anniversary to Shepard.
“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,’” she captioned the post, alongside a photo of her sitting on her husband’s lap as he hugs her.
Several fans have since taken to the comment section, calling Bell out for her “insensitive” caption — particularly given that October is widely recognized in the U.S. as Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
“Hey! i’ve been a fan for a while. I just wanted to say that please don’t joke about domestic violence,” one commenter wrote, reminding her to “please keep in mind that this is something real that lots of people suffer on a daily basis. And the text could be triggering for victims.”
The post generated further discussion on the popular Fauxmoi subreddit, garnering hundreds of additional comments.
The couple has been together since 2007 and shares two daughters, Lincoln, 12, and Delta, 10. They first met at a birthday dinner for Forgetting Sarah Marshall producer Shauna Robertson. After two years of dating, they quietly got engaged in 2009. However, the pair waited to tie the knot until same-sex marriage was legalized in the U.S.
Following the Supreme Court’s landmark decision to strike down the Defense of Marriage Act in June 2013, Bell quickly jumped on X to re-propose to Shepard.
“@daxshepard1 will you marry me? Xo #marriageequality #loveislove,” she wrote, to which Shepard replied: “DOMA is dead. Prop 8 is dead. Now let’s bring my big, gay marriage to @IMKristenBell to Life!!!!”
Months later, they got married during a private ceremony at the Beverly Hills courthouse.
The national domestic abuse helpline offers support for women on 0808 2000 247, or you can visit the Refuge website. There is a dedicated men's advice line on 0808 8010 327.
Those in the US can call the domestic violence hotline on 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). Other international helplines can be found via www.befrienders.org.
