Reality Star's Explosive Threat to Daughter Goes Viral
Kelly Dodd, the former star of The Real Housewives of Orange County, has found herself at the centre of a major family scandal after a private voice note containing threats against her 19-year-old daughter was leaked online. In the explosive recording, Dodd threatens to release embarrassing recordings she made of her university-aged daughter, Jolie.
The Leaked Voice Note and Its Contents
The voice message, which went viral on Thanksgiving, was originally sent by Kelly to one of Jolie's friends with a request to forward it to her daughter. Instead, the friend publicly shared a video of herself vaping while playing the audio for all to hear. In the note, Kelly can be heard angrily confronting Jolie for having 'blocked me on everything' and for taking her father's side in their ongoing family disputes.
Kelly specifically warns her daughter: 'I have recordings of you screaming at your dad because he hasn't taken you on vacation, screaming that he didn't buy you a car. Do you remember those recordings that I saved? I have those and I am gonna publicly put them out there.' She further lamented the financial support she had provided, including buying Jolie a car, paying for her college education, health insurance, and clothing.
A Troubled Co-Parenting History
Kelly shares her daughter Jolie with ex-husband Michael Dodd, from whom she separated in 2017 after eleven years of marriage. Their divorce initially sparked a bitter custody battle, with Kelly at one point publicly labelling Michael a 'deadbeat' father. By 2021, however, they appeared to have reached an amicable co-parenting arrangement that Kelly herself described as a 'miracle'.
This peace was short-lived, as public feuding resumed by 2022. The current conflict emerges while Jolie is studying at a university in Paris, where she posted Instagram Stories from a Kim Petras concert on the same night the voice note scandal erupted.
In her angry message, Kelly also referenced her ex-husband's relationship with Laura White, whom he dated for years post-divorce. Ironically, Kelly had previously praised White in 2021 as an 'amazing step Mom' to Jolie, but in the leaked audio she raged that Michael had been 'banging some f***ing loser' and prioritised other children over Jolie.
Legal Threats and Social Media Fallout
The situation escalated further when Kelly revealed she had retained criminal defence lawyer Cameron Talley, known for securing the domestic violence acquittal of MMA fighter Jason 'Mayhem' Miller. Kelly sneered in the recording that Talley was 'laughing at you. You're a joke and so is your dad.'
As the voice note spread across social media, Kelly responded by resharing posts from a fan account that defended her position and criticised Jolie as a 'spoiled and entitled f***ing brat' and a 'little b****'. However, she also shared a more conciliatory post from the same account, which acknowledged that 'all family fights and make up' and expressed wishes for peace between mother and daughter.
The public nature of this feud represents a dramatic shift from as recently as August 2024, when Kelly proudly posted videos of herself helping Jolie move into her Paris university dormitory. The deterioration became particularly evident when Kelly's brother, Eric Meza, posted a video claiming Jolie had 'disowned' her mother, describing Kelly as a 'terrible mom' - allegations which Kelly swiftly dismissed, labelling her brother a 'psycho' who was 'full of s***'.
Kelly Dodd, who has been married to Fox News personality Rick Leventhal since 2020, has yet to make an official public statement beyond her social media activity. The Daily Mail has contacted Kelly for comment regarding the leaked audio and the escalating family conflict.
