Adam Brody & Kristen Bell Had An Awkward First Meeting (& One Of Them Didn't Even Remember It)

Thanks to "Scream 4," Kristen Bell and Adam Brody's professional history dates back to 2011. However, they didn't share any scenes in the fourth installment of the horror franchise, nor did they actually cross paths on the set. Rather, they met in a car after "Scream 4" wrapped — and Bell has no memory of their first interaction. Thankfully, Brody remembers the moment.

As "The O.C." star told Entertainment Tonight, he and Bell were both traveling with their agents in a car that was too small for all of them. "We were at a 'Scream 4' screening, on the way to a 'Scream 4' after party. And she hopped into the back/trunk area, and there wasn't really a seat," Brody recalled. This account didn't jog Bell's memory, but she believed his version of events — especially the part about her jumping into a trunk. "That feels like something I would've done," she quipped.

Since then, they've not only cultivated a friendship, but have made up for their lack of screen time in "Scream 4." They played ex-lovers in the 2013 romcom "Some Girl(s)," and had supporting roles in 2017's "ChiPs." Even in the 2020s, it seems they can't get enough of working together. In 2024, Bell and Brody's series "Nobody Wants This" hit Netflix. The "Veronica Mars" star read for the project first, and immediately recommended Brody to be her co-lead after reading the script. "I was like, 'Okay, yeah, I'd love to do this. And, also, Adam Brody is the guy.' Thankfully, they all agreed," she told the Los Angeles Times. 

As is wont to happen when two actors have undeniable chemistry in a movie or TV show, "Nobody Wants This" has sparked some "shipping" chatter about "Gilmore Girls" alum Adam Brody and "The Good Place" star Kristen Bell. However, in real life, the longtime friends are happily linked to other actors: Brody has been married to "Gossip Girl" star Leighton Meester since 2014, and Bell and Dax Shepard got hitched in 2013. 

When the Los Angeles Times reporter Yvonne Villarreal mentioned the "shipping" talk, Bell said she understood it on some level, but has never really thought about costars being together in real life simply because she happened to enjoy their onscreen chemistry. "I think if anyone's shipping us, as the kids say, they're shipping our friendship. But no one wants to see broken homes. Those people are all younger, that's understandable," Brody added. He went on to point out that fans seem to be attached to his and Bell's respective marriages anyway. "I also think that we're in public relationships that people also ship," he said.

Whatever the case, anyone pining for this pairing will have to settle for shows like "Nobody Wants This" to get their fix. Ironically, the title of the series is more or less an appropriate response to shippers still rooting for Bell and Brody to be a thing.