California actress Sophia Bush is facing criticism online after being accused of encouraging women who have doubts about their marriages to get divorced.
Bush appeared on Alex Cooper’s Call Her Daddy podcast on October 21, 2026, where she discussed various aspects of her personal and professional life. The conversation covered her experience starring in One Tree Hill, the challenges she faced in the entertainment industry, her journey of self-discovery, and coming out as bisexual. She also discussed her relationship with her wife, Ashlyn Harris, and addressed public speculation about their relationship.
Part of the episode featured Bush and Cooper discussing how women can recognize when a marriage is no longer working for them. In a viral clip from the episode, Cooper explained that it can take women a lot of “trial and error” to reach a point where they can advocate for themselves and understand what they want.
Cooper then referred to Bush’s past relationships, noting that she had experienced a “gut feeling something was off.” Bush repeatedly agreed with the host as she spoke. Cooper described the message as a beautiful one for women to take away, adding that women can “get really really in our head” about whether they should leave their marriages.
Cooper continued by explaining that women might ask themselves, “can I even get better?” when questioning their marriages. Both women agreed that the answer is “always yes.” Bush then added, “This idea that it’s too late or you are too old or how are you to want more. That’s patriarchy.”
Bush Faces Backlash
Some viewers interpreted Bush’s comments as encouragement for women to leave their marriages. However, her message focused on challenging societal expectations that make women feel they are too old or have missed their chance to find something better, rather than suggesting that every woman questioning her marriage should get divorced.
Despite Bush not explicitly telling women to get divorced, some online users claimed that was the message she was promoting. X user @CollinRugg shared the video with the caption, “‘Call Her Daddy’ host Alex Cooper and actress Sophia Bush say a “beautiful” message for women is that it’s never too late to get a divorce. Bush divorced her husband in 2023 before getting married to a woman. It’s hard to comprehend how much damage this show has done to women.”
Meanwhile, X user @ezradulis wrote, “‘Call Her Daddy’ host Alex Cooper & actress Sophia Bush: if a woman is questioning whether she can do better than her current husband, ‘the answer is always yes.’” However, Bush did not explicitly encourage women to divorce their spouses. Instead, she supported the idea that women should not feel pressured to remain in unhappy marriages because of societal expectations.
Viewers Slam California Actress Sophia Bush Over Marriage Comments
Many viewers online interpreted California actress Sophia Bush’s comments as encouraging women to get divorced, prompting criticism of both her and Cooper. “You’re supposed to communicate and improve your relationship! That’s the real measure of a good human relationship. These women are idiots!” one person wrote. Another commenter said, “Had no idea who Sophia Bush was, but it looks like she has been married, so far, 3 times. What a huge surprise.”
More viewers criticized Bush and Cooper, with one person writing, “Holy [expletive] women are wicked to each other in the most unimaginable ways. It’s actually tragic (and a little pathetic) how these women sell other women these lies and they gobble it up then women wake up divorced at 45 and realize their pool of interested men has shrunken to single digits. Why lie like this??” Another commenter argued, “If you are married to a good person, there is no such thing as better. All ‘better’ is in that context is aesthetics or lifestyle around them. But the actual person? Has faults and shortcomings just as much as the next one.”
The video prompted discussion about whether celebrities should offer relationship advice to the public. It also highlighted the importance of understanding the context behind someone’s comments before concluding their message.
