Photo: Instagram
Their constant PDA gives concerned fans the ick.
By Alexandra Blogier — Written on Jan 22, 2023
There is no celebrity couple more notorious for their PDA than Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker.
Their friends-to-lovers love story has been marked by many very public and very affectionate displays — on red carpets, social media and in the Poosh founder's reality show, "The Kardashians."
And while there is nothing wrong with showing your husband or wife some love, one experts believe the nature of their displays may point to another problem in their relationship.
A body language expert says Travis Barker's PDA with Kourtney Kardashian is 'controlling.'
Body language expert Patti Wood believes that Travis Barker is controlling Kourtney Kardashian, as shown through Kardashian’s physical behavior within their relationship.
In an interview given to The Sun, Wood claims that Kardashian’s gestures show that Barker is in control of their relationship, despite her active participation in the couple’s near-constant PDA.
“Generally, I’m seeing that Travis likes to show to the public that he has a sexual relationship and this one is very passionate, and she's his,” Wood stated.
Kardashian married the Blink-182 drummer in a Santa Barbara courthouse on May 15, 2022, after they began dating in October 2020, following a long-time friendship.
The couple then had a lavish wedding ceremony in Portofino, Italy on May 22, 2022.
The marriage is Kardashian’s first marriage and Barker’s third marriage, as he was previously married to Shanna Moakler from 2004 to 2008, and was briefly married to Melissa Kennedy from 2001 until 2002.
Wood says Kravis' PDA suggests Barker is the 'dominant' one in the relationship.
Kardashian and Barker are very into “showing off their highly sexual relationship,” according to Wood.
She noted that while both Kardashian and Barker are “exhibitionists, there’s also a common thread in their poses, with some looking bizarre.”
Wood analyzed an image from the stars' Hulu show of Kardashian sitting on Barker’s lap, with Barker sitting on a couch in an “alpha sitting position with his legs spread really far apart.”
Kardashian is shown straddling Barker, a move that Wood believes shows that she’s “always happily playing along” with Barker being “hypersexual” while also always “in the dominant position.”
Wood notes that Kardashian 'has a playfulness; regarding their PDA, 'but the bottom line is that Travis likes to show ownership.'
Wood referred to an August 2021 photo of Barker holding Kardashian’s stomach in a “bizarre placement.”
Wood believes that how Barker held his fingers around Kardashian’s stomach showed “control and ownership.”
Photo credit: Instagram
Wood notes that Barker has “his back arm around her and so he's enveloping her, but his head placement with the chin up, sunglasses on, he's looking far away,” showing a certain kind of disconnect between the two.
"This is so bizarrely posed when he's saying, 'I want the world to see how I contain her,'" Wood claims.
In a clip from the Hulu show The Kardashians, Barker is shown invading Kardashian’s space while she sits and uses her phone.
Wood states that Barker comes into Kardashian’s “intimate zone of space” and interrupts what she’s doing so that she’ll pay attention to him.
“His face is right up against the side of her head which is saying, 'I'm surrounding you, you can't ignore me, and you belong to me.'"
Certain fans believe that the couple is not only mismatched but "creepy."
One Reddit user commented on the clip, stating, "You can tell she’s getting a little of the 'ick' here because she keeps pulling away from him."
The same user noted that having someone "sexualize your body all the time even when you’re doing the most mundane things feels gross and uncomfortable no matter what you try to tell yourself."
Alexandra Blogier is a writer on YourTango's news and entertainment team. She covers celebrity gossip, pop culture analysis and all things to do with the entertainment industry.