Dax Shepard and his wife Kristen Bell are notoriously candid about the ups and downs of their relationship.
While it may seem like an unusual choice for celebrity parents, Shepard, 46, explained why they are so honest in a recent interview with Willie Geist of Sunday TODAY.
“We don’t want anyone to think we know each other and it’s been easy because if that is someone’s expectation of a relationship and certainly a marriage, it is a bad expectation to have,” he said. “So it’s interesting. We feel that we have no option. “
Shepard started to joke that he was going to exaggerate how long his conversation with Willie would last as a way to get a little more time alone.
“I have the option of saying that it went on for another half hour,” he said to Willie.
“I will say that we took too long. It is (me) to blame,” replied Willie.
The couple revealed early in the pandemic that they, like many Americans, were having relationship problems during the quarantine.
During an Instagram Live with former TODAY anchor Katie Couric, Shepard was asked how her family was doing and replied: “We are getting along with the kids and getting along with the adults, we are friends with, but that it has been stressful for mom and dad. “
Bell, 40, added: “We’ve been in each other’s throats very, very badly for the past two, oh yes.”
Shepard joked that they stopped fighting just a few minutes before talking to Couric.
“This is as close physically as we were in a few days, because we just found ourselves disgusting,” added Bell.
“America’s girlfriend has some character flaws,” Shepard joked, mocking Bell.
Bell and Shepard may argue when they are trapped indoors, but they support each other when it matters. The “Frozen” star sided with her husband when, after 16 years of sobriety, he became addicted to opioids after a motorcycle accident in August.
Shepard broke the news on his podcast, “Armchair Specialist”. He initially worried about making his relapse public, but a friend’s advice changed his mind.
“I have a good friend who said to me, you know, ‘If you like helping people, there is almost nothing you can do that is more useful than telling everyone,'” recalls Shepard.
Reflecting on how he came to understand what allowed him to slip, he continued, “Did I have to look, like what I’m not dealing with? What am I ignoring? What am I just pushing into the corner? And it became obvious to me, and I feel wonderful. In fact, I feel better with these current four months than maybe the previous year of sobriety. ”
In addition to her popular podcast, Shepard has a new show that fits the actor’s area of expertise, “Top Gear America”.
“My whole life has been cars,” Shepard told Willie. “My father sold cars, my mother worked at General Motors and moved up the ranks. Then she started a company that organized major press events for new car launches.”
“The only reason I am forced to make money is to give it to people to give me the keys to things,” he added.