Denise Richards Sizzles in Bikini Photos as She Reflects on Rebuilding Her Life After 'Burning It Down': 'Made Every Mistake the Hard Way'

Denise Richards wasn't shy about showing off her famous curves in a bikini as she opened up about rebuilding her life.

The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alum, 55, left little to the imagination wearing a tiny black two-piece swimsuit while taking a dip in a lavish swimming pool in a photo shared via Instagram on Thursday, October 8.

Another photo showed Richards posing on the edge of the pool, seemingly after taking a swim, her wet hair dripping as she layered a cover-up over her bikini.

The actress got vulnerable in the caption, writing, "Every family has that one daughter who built a life. Burned it down. Rebuilt it."

"Made every mistake the hard way. Swears way too much, loves way too hard. Will stand up to a man twice her size," Richards wrote. "Somehow gives great advice she never follows herself, and has enough stories to make her parents question how she’s still alive."

Though the Wild Things star didn't elaborate on her caption, she's currently in the middle of a contentious divorce from her estranged husband, Aaron Phypers.

Phypers, 54, filed for divorce from Richards on July 7, 2025, citing "irreconcilable differences" after six years of marriage. Court documents listed their separation date as July 4, 2025.

Their split only continued to get messier as Richards accused Phypers, whom she wed in 2018, of "repeatedly abusing" her throughout their marriage.

Phypers denied the accusations, calling them "completely false and deeply hurtful" in a statement. He fired back by accusing his estranged wife of infidelity and physical abuse in an interview with TMZ.

Richards addressed the divorce drama during an August appearance on Bunnie XO's "Dumb Blonde" podcast, admitting that she exchanged "inappropriate" text messages with another man but was "very loyal" to Phypers.

"We were together over eight years, married a little over six, and I never thought I would’ve been in this situation ever. And now I get it," she explained about their messy split. "It's easy to say, ‘Why wouldn’t someone leave,’ or ‘You should’ve known, you should’ve seen these things,’ a lot of people asked me that. I didn’t. I wouldn’t have married the person."

She claimed that their relationship "didn't start out" toxic, but eventually became "physically, emotionally and financially" abusive.

"I was so shocked," she recalled of the first time he struck her, allegedly after their 2018 wedding. "I was like, 'Oh, f---. There’s no going back from this.’ My dad always taught my sister and I, he said, ‘If a man hits you once, he’ll hit you again.’ And I told him, I said, ‘I don’t know what to do.'"