Dax Shepard Admits He 'Loves Men's Bodies More Than Anything in the World' During Bizarre Podcast Interview
Dax Shepard made the bizarre confession on his podcast.
Aug. 11 2026, Published 1:20 p.m. ET
Dax Shepard made a bizarre confession about his lifelong obsession with the male physique, revealing the heartbreaking childhood trauma that helped fuel his fixation, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
"I f------ love men's bodies more than anything in the world. I love muscle so much," Shepard, 51, gushed to his Armchair Expert podcast guest Taron Edgerton on August 10.
Dax Shepard Loves Men's Bodies 'More Than Anything in the World'
Dax Shepard traced his initial love of men's bodies to movies he watched as a child including 'Conan the Barbarian.'
Shepard traced his fascination with muscular, masculine forms back to his childhood and to movie stars whose buff bodies were prominently featured in films.
"Well, for me, I'll explain it as like being born in '75, and it was like my first drive-in movie was Conan the Barbarian," the Idiocracy star revealed, referring to the film that put Arnold Schwarzenegger on the Hollywood map with his bodybuilding Mr. Universe physique.
"I was just like, wait a minute, a man can look like a gorilla, and then Stallone was at his height. It was like the birth of muscles," he added, referring to action star Sylvester Stallone.
Taron Edgeron Said He Was 'Running Myself Ragged' for His Body
Taron Edgerton revealed he 'starved' himself to get the cut physique he had in 'Apex.'
However, Edgerton noted that the chiseled body he had himself in his Netflix film Apex came at a massive price.
"I think it’s worth being wary of that, though, because that version of me in Apex, the guy who’s whatever silly body fat I was and all kind of, you know, strong, every day I punish myself for not looking like that," the Rocketman star shared. "But the truth of the matter is that I starved myself and I was running myself absolutely ragged to get there."
Dax Shepard's 'Violent Stepdad' Caused His 'Fascination' With Muscles
Dax Shepard said he became obsessed with muscular men's bodies as a child due to his abusive stepfather.
Shepard revealed how, with age and time, he's come to understand why he became obsessed with muscular men's bodies as a child, and it had seeds in trauma.
"I'll hit you with my current understanding of my fascination. One is that I grew up in a house with a violent stepdad beating everyone up," he shared.
"So, when I saw Conan, I was like, 'Oh, if I look like that, I got no problems for the rest of my life.' So that just, that was like, 'Yeah, ... If I was Conan, I got no problems," Shepard noted.
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Working Out Is Dax Shepard's 'Medicine'
Dax Shepard showed off his fit physique in an August 2 video.
"Second, and I think this is the true thing that intrigues me about muscles, is that it's rare that you can see a visual display of someone's work ethic and dedication," Shepard continued.
He then relayed his own journey to gaining that desired look.
"And as someone whose shadow is 'You're a lazy piece of s--- who's undisciplined.' To conquer that is, to me, the ultimate goal. I can see, 'Wow, there's some dedication here. There's some execution. There's like real commitment. There's struggle.' This is the proof of making oneself suffer for a goal," the podcast host said.
Ultimately, the Hit and Run star figured out how to get the body he wants.
"I eat in a way that, like, works for me so that I'm not miserable at all. I work out all the time because I'm a nutcase and it's my medicine. And the esteem I get from knowing I did the thing I didn't want to do is, um, joyful; I love it," Shepard raved.
