Bradley Cooper Gave Dax Shepard This Advice Before Dating Kristen Bell
Originally appeared on E! Online
Dax Shepard got a lesson from Bradley Cooper's silver linings playbook.
The Armchair Expert podcast host shared that the A Star Is Born director offered him some invaluable dating advice shortly before he started dating his wife of 11 years Kristen Bell.
At the time, Dax asked Bradley—who he met through mutual friend Will Arnett in 2006—what to do about a tumultuous relationship he was in with someone who often made him feel insecure about her having "a lot more status" and money than him.
"I would tell him this whole fight, and he would say, 'Wow, if she had said that to me, I'd feel really less than and I'd be insecure about this,'" Dax recalled during an onstage conversation with the New Yorker's Tyler Foggatt on Oct. 26, per People. "And I was like, 'Wow, that's exactly how I feel. You can't tell a woman that.'"
But Bradley disagreed, urging his pal to test out being honest with his former flame since he had nothing to lose.
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"He would say, 'Look, you're clearly breaking up with this gal. Why don't you practice on her?'" Dax continued. "Like, go tell her, 'When you said this, I felt this way.'"
Dax wound up giving the idea a shot and was surprised by the positive outcome.
"The reaction was, first of all, shock," the Parenthood star remembered, "like, 'There's a man saying he feels really insecure and little and less than and insignificant.'"
Ultimately, that romance didn't stand the test of time, but Bradley's experiment certainly did. In fact, Dax said his lesson on how to "lead with vulnerability" helped him a lot when he first started dating Kristen, with whom he now shares daughters Lincoln, 11, and Delta, 9.
And even now, he encourages others struggling to open up to "practice" sharing their most vulnerable emotions in doomed relationships.
"This is a freebie," Dax explained. "They're out of there. So, give it a shot."
To revisit Dax and Kristen's entire love story, read on.
Who Is This?
"Who is this sparkly creature?'" Dax recalled thinking when he met Kristen at a friend's birthday dinner in 2007. After running into each other again two weeks later at a hockey game they decided to accept fate and start dating.
Opposites Attract
The old saying rings true for this couple, who both had doubts to go along with the butterflies early on. Dax said his playboy past didn't go unnoticed by "good girl" Kristen, who told Good Housekeeping, "We're the Paula Abdul video 'Opposites Attract' personified."
The Engagement
The two got engaged in late 2009 while co-starring in When In Rome together. They weren't immune to the romance of the Italian city and just like in their movie, the couple fell under a real life love spell.
Snuggling Sweethearts
In an interview about her relationship with Dax in 2010, Kristen shared,"A snuggle party can fix anything—it's true."
The Wedding
The couple got married in a simple ceremony at a Beverly Hills courthouse in 2013 after announcing their plans to wed on Twitter earlier in the year. Their choice to forego an extravagant wedding made their love story even more romantic to fans.
Next Comes the Baby Carriage
Bell gave birth to their first child, a girl they named Lincoln, in March 2013. Fiercely protective of her daughter's privacy, Kristen quipped, "I would really like to see the aftermath of the first person who tries to take a picture of Lincoln."
Parents of Two
In December 2014 the couple had their second daughter, Delta.
The Plot Twist
In an interview with Good Housekeeping in May 2015 Kristen shared that she and her hubby attend couples counseling when they need to work through an issue saying, "Therapy is not something to be embarrassed about."
Instagram Official
Kristen Bell finally joined Instagram in 2016 and inaugurated her account with a closeup of her and her husband sharing a kiss.
Happily Ever After
The two looked just as in love as ever at the premiere of Dax's new movie Chips in March 2017.
Happy Fourth!
They two celebrated the 2017 Fourth of July holiday in style.
Keepin' It Real
The pair continues to prove that they're just like any other couple. They openly share that they go to marriage counseling and sometimes fight. However what remains constant is their respect for each other. Kristen shared her marriage advice on Instagram writing, "Loving someone despite their faults, failings, or character defects, is the most powerful loving thing you can do. Rejoice in what makes the other person happy and allow them their individual interests."
Humor Is Key
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