Stephen Curry Defends Wife Ayesha Over Film Kiss Backlash

Stephen Curry posted a 90-second Instagram video on Wednesday attacking former professional athletes who criticized his wife Ayesha's on-screen kiss in the new Roku romantic comedy Second Chance Holiday.

The four-time NBA champion named former NBA players Gilbert Arenas and Nick Young, and former NFL players Emmanuel Acho and LeSean McCoy, accusing them of diminishing his wife's professional achievements and perpetuating double standards about what women are allowed to do.

What triggered the response?

Second Chance Holiday premiered on the Roku Channel on 5 November. It marks Ayesha Curry's first leading film role, opposite actor Matthew Daddario. A scene in which the two kiss prompted the ex-athletes to question her participation and debate its implications for her marriage on their podcasts.

Arenas, a three-time NBA All-Star who began his career with Golden State, described Ayesha as the "only blemish" on Curry's family life, arguing she did not behave like the wives of other prominent basketball players. Young, Curry's teammate on the Warriors' 2018 championship team, joined the conversation. McCoy separately questioned Ayesha's decision to film the romantic scene.

What did Curry say?

"I've been hearing a lot of noise, and usually the noise doesn't bother me, doesn't bother Ayesha," Curry said in the video, which he captioned "PSA".

"But this one, trying to step on the accomplishments of my wife and obviously, leading podcast tables and topics and giving their opinion on somebody else's wife," he continued, before naming Young, Arenas and Acho.

Curry framed the remarks as part of a wider problem. "It kind of speaks to a bigger conversation about how you view women in this world and what they're all allowed and not allowed to do," he said, also questioning the former athletes' understanding of acting.

He suggested an apology was owed. "Anytime Ayesha Curry shows up in your headline, I kindly suggest you just give the happy hands, congratulations, and maybe, just maybe, the apology can be as loud as y'all leading your shows with this topic," he said.

He closed the video by thanking the commentators for the attention and encouraging viewers to watch the film on Roku: "Appreciate the free pub."

Who is Ayesha Curry?

Ayesha Curry is an actor, cookbook author and entrepreneur with nearly two decades of television and film credits. They include an appearance on Disney Channel's Hannah Montana and a supporting role alongside Lindsay Lohan in the 2024 Netflix romantic comedy Irish Wish. She and Stephen Curry married in 2011 and have four children.

Her husband has spoken on gender equality before. In a 2018 essay for the Players' Tribune calling for an end to the gender pay gap, Curry credited his wife and mother with shaping his views, writing that they taught him to "always stay listening to women, to always stay believing in women".

What happens now?

Curry, who has generally avoided publicly engaging with criticism of his family, broke that pattern — and his sister Sydel Curry-Lee backed him in the comments: "HEAVY on how it speaks about how the world views women. Play with someone else. Enough is enough!"

He accompanied the video with photos of his wife promoting the movie and the message "Keep shining", plus a caption swipe at the commentators: "You don't have to like & subscribe to all podcasts."

The post landed as Golden State, joint-third in the Western Conference at 8-3, prepared to face the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night, the opening game of a five-game road trip. Whether the named ex-athletes respond — or apologize — will decide if this dispute stays in the podcast cycle or fades before the road trip ends.