Lake Bell made it Instagram official with artist Rashid Johnson on Saturday, October 31, posting a Halloween selfie of the two of them together. Her caption was short and knowing: “Happy Hallow-hard launch.”
Lake Bell’s Instagram Announcement
Bell, 47, wore a black stole with a matching beret. The outlets differ on Johnson. Us Weekly described a classic charcoal tuxedo and gave his age as 48. Just Jared called it a navy velvet tuxedo jacket and put him at 49.
Neither has said more about the relationship since the post went up.
Her friends said plenty, though. Us Weekly reported that actress Erinn Hayes left a comment calling the launch fine, with a red heart. Reed Moreno added three heart-eye emojis. Designer Gabriela Hearst split her reaction across two replies, spelling out that they were one of the hottest couples alive. Alice Evans went with “Holy hotness,” followed by hearts.
Bell picked Halloween for the hard launch. She could have kept posting solo photos and let the pictures from their public events speak for her. She chose a holiday built on costumes and ended the guessing with one selfie.
Public Appearances Together
Bell and Johnson had already attended several public events together before Halloween, so the selfie did not come out of nowhere.
In September, they attended a New York Times event celebrating 175 years of independent reporting. Just days before the post, they were together at the American Ballet Theatre Fall Gala. Just Jared also noted it is unclear how long they have been dating.
Bell and Johnson are both coming out of long marriages. Lake Bell was previously married to Scott Campbell from 2013 to 2020, and they share two children. In 2022 she was linked to comedian Chris Rock, and Just Jared noted that Rock announced he was single in his 2023 Netflix special.
Johnson was married to fellow artist Sheree Hovsepian for 15 years. According to Just Jared, they announced their split earlier this year. They share a son.
So the timeline runs like this. Lake Bell and Rashid Johnson confirmed their romance on Halloween 2026. By September he is at a Times gala with Bell. By October 31 she is posting him on her grid. Two people who have each done the long version of a relationship are not treating this one like a secret.
Lake Bell on Co-Parenting With Scott Campbell
Lake Bell has spent years talking openly about what life after divorce looks like with kids in the picture. She and Campbell have stayed committed to raising their children together amicably, Us Weekly reported.
Speaking to Us in August 2022, she called respect and communication the key to coparenting. She also rejected the idea that one good conversation settles things for good, describing it instead as an evolution. The relationship with her ex, she said, was the most important rapport of her life, for the sake of their children.
She has also been specific about when a new partner gets to meet the kids. Bell told Parents.com that she and Campbell had set parameters, and now trust each other to decide when the time is right. Her own rule of thumb was roughly five or six months in, and only if the person has shown they care about meeting them. It could happen sooner, she said, if the new partner has children too, because the kids have to get along. Her line on that, as quoted by Us Weekly: “You can’t glue these kids together.”
That is the part of this story the Halloween photo does not show. A selfie is easy. Blending two households, each with a parent who still matters, is the actual work. Bell has described Campbell as something like an army buddy, someone she went through the trenches with and will be in a life with no matter what. She framed it bluntly to Parents.com: they could resent each other, or do something about it.
Most people who date after divorce are dating a whole system, not a single person. There is an ex who is staying. There are kids with opinions. There is a schedule built around other people’s weekends. Bell has said out loud the things many divorced parents only think, and she set the bar for introductions long before Johnson was in the picture.
Both of them now have children from their previous marriages. By Bell’s own logic, that could speed some things up, or it could stop them entirely.
Neither has said whether the kids have met.
Sources: Us Weekly, Just Jared
