Inside Denise Richards and Aaron Phypers' ‘toxic' reality show as crew members reveals ‘tense couple barely spoke'
Phypers, 52, filed for divorce from Richards on July 7, three days after they had an explosive fight.
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Actress Richards, 54, has accused Phypers of carrying out domestic violence throughout their marriage and included a picture of herself with a black eye, allegedy caused by Phypers, in recent court documents.
She also claimed in the papers that he " threatened to kill her and caused her at least three concussions."
Phypers has denied her claims, telling US Weekly, "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 has since accused Richards of cheating on him in an interview with TMZ and of lashing out when he confronted her.
Now insiders on their reality show, Denise Richards & Her Wild Things, which aired earlier this year, have spoken out about the tense atmosphere on set.
"You could cut tension with a knife sometimes," one source told the Daily Mail.
The insider said the pair "wouldn't speak to each other off camera" if they'd had an argument the evening before and they would often spend time in separate rooms.
On one occasion Phypers allegedly muttered about Richards going through the menopause when she fluffed her lines.
Denise Richards' husband Aaron Phypers files for divorce after 6 years together
The shady alleged comments were said to be a regular occurrence and made crew members uncomfortable, the source told the Mail.
While businessman Phypers played the perfect husband when the cameras were rolling, he is said to have felt 'very threatened' by Richards' fame.
The insiders said Phypers had a big ego and "walked around as if he was the biggest star on the planet when we were filming."
The Sun has contacted Phypers and Richards for comment.
The pair's concerning alleged dynamic was caught on hot mic on a 2020 episode of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.
As Phypers and Richards walked off following a row with Teddi Mellencamp and Kyle Richards, Phypers said, "Don't tell me what to say. I'm going to crush your f*****g hand. Stop it."
Richards alleges that she suffered physical and verbal abuse throughout her seven-year marriage, including strikes to her head and face and degrading profanities, according to court documents obtained by The U.S. Sun.
"Throughout our relationship, Aaron would frequently violently choke me, violently squeeze my head with both hands, tightly squeeze my arms, violently slap me in my face and head, aggressively slam my head into the bathroom rack, threaten to kill me," Richards said in court documents.
"Aaron regularly threatened to 'break my jaw' and would cry, beg me to stay, and promise to get help - none of which ever happened," the actress added.
"Aaron has caused me at least three concussions. Aaron has told me that he has left recording devices to record me while I was alone in hotel rooms and at my townhouses."
Most recently, she alleged in court docs that on July 4, over the course of two hours, Phypers repeatedly "got within two inches of my face and screamed at me degrading profanities, including calling me a c**t, whore, and a piece of s**t."
Richards added: "Aaron's actions were scaring me to the point that, as with nearly all of Aaron's abuse of me, I was afraid that Aaron may kill me."
The Wild Things actress claimed she never called law enforcement on her husband because Aaron "threatened to kill himself" if she reported him, she said in court documents.
Richards claimed in court docs Phypers would hack her laptop and phone and download all of her text messages.
Phypers told TMZ he found out about Richards' alleged hookup with another man earlier this year, when he discovered text messages on her laptop.
He claimed the messages included selfies and plans for "rendezvous at a hotel".
He said he confronted Richards about the alleged affair and they decided to work it out and stay together.
But a huge fight over the July 4 weekend prompted him to file for divorce.
He also claimed that his phone went missing for more than 24 hours and later found it smashed to pieces in a bin.
Phypers told the outlet he questioned Richards about the phone but she alletedly "hit and scratched him".
VICIOUS ATTACK
During an incident on January 17, 2022, Richards alleged in court docs that Phypers viciously used the heel of his palm to strike her in her left eye, causing massive swelling and bruising.
Richards claimed that moments before the incident, Phypers became "paranoid" claiming that several potted plants he had just purchased for his workspace contained listening devices.
The actress said Phypers began screaming and that's when a police officer, who would regularly station in the parking lot of the Malibu property, approached the door.
However, after the officer left, Richards alleged in court docs that Phypers continued screaming then "used the heel of his palm to strike me in the eye while calling me a 'f**king b***h.'"
Richards claimed a family member witnessed the attack, which caused significant bruising to form around her left eye.
"The bruising took a month to heal. I had to cancel two professional meetings and rely on a makeup artist - who was aware of the situation - to cover the injury for an unavoidable work obligation," she added in the docs.
She claimed her husband insisted she tell others that she had "walked into a piece of his equipment stored on the building's balcony."
A judge granted Richards a temporary restraining order against Phypers that will last until August 8, when the estranged couple are due in court.
Phypers was ordered to stay 100 yards from Richards' home, place of work and vehicle.
He was also ordered to return her laptops and everything he downloaded from her phone.
DIVORCE SHOCK
The U.S. Sun previously reported that Richards was caught by surprise when she learned about Phypers' divorce filing.
Sources close to the former Housewives of Beverly Hills star said she felt "utterly betrayed."
"She never in a million years wanted to get another divorce and she never in a million years thought he would do this to her," the insider told The U.S. Sun in early July.
"It's a betrayal; he promised he would never do this. She made it crystal clear to him thousands of times that they could work through anything no matter how big the problem but divorce was never an option.
"He agreed. Then did this. There's more questions than answers right now."
Phypers is requesting spousal support to continue with their lavish lifestyle, which cost over $105,000 a month, according to court papers filed in Los Angeles.
"Denise thinks it's egregious he is seeking spousal support from her after she has been financially supporting him all these years," the source added.
'She thought he was different but turns out he's what people warned her about.'
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or chat at thehotline.org.
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