Kyle Rittenhouse — the gun-rights figure who drew national attention in 2020 after shooting three people during a protest — has resurfaced online with controversial wedding photos.
In the images, Rittenhouse and his new wife pose proudly with a firearm, instantly sparking debate across social media.
He captioned the post on X: “I’m back on social media, I’m back in the fight, and I’m here to stay. Quick update: six months ago, I made the best decision of my life and married my best friend.”
Rittenhouse first exploded into national notoriety in 2020 after he traveled from his home in Illinois to Kenosha, Wisconsin, carrying a semiautomatic rifle. During a chaotic night of protests over police brutality, he fatally shot two men and wounded a third — a moment that instantly turned him into one of the most polarizing figures in America.
He was ultimately acquitted of all charges after telling the court he opened fire in self-defense, claiming he was attacked and feared for his life. In the years since, Rittenhouse has been embraced as a hero by many Second Amendment supporters, becoming a symbolic figure in the gun-rights movement.
Newsweek has reached out to Rittenhouse for comment via email and X direct message outside regular business hours.
What to Know
Rittenhouse posted a series of striking photos on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram showing himself and his wife, Bella, posing with firearms on their wedding day. Bella appears in a white wedding gown holding an AR-style rifle, while Rittenhouse stands beside her in a blue suit, gripping a smaller handgun and wearing what looks like an AR-style pin on his blazer collar.
He added to the caption: “(Bella) Rittenhouse, I couldn’t be happier. I love you, beautiful. More big announcements coming soon…”
The post has already surpassed 15 million views as of Thursday morning. Rittenhouse previously stepped away from social media in January, saying he needed “peace, a fresh start, somewhere far from the constant noise and chaos.”
But he says the assassination of Charlie Kirk on September 10 “shook [him] to his core” and pushed him to return.
“In that moment, I realized something important: this fight for our future, for our freedoms — it can’t wait. It doesn’t pause when you want it to. I couldn’t sit on the sidelines anymore,” he wrote in a pinned post.
“My wife looked me in the eye and said, ‘If you’re going back, I’m with you.’ So I’m back. Not quietly. Not halfway. I’m coming back in a big way.”
Rittenhouse first rose to national attention after he was tried — and ultimately acquitted — for the shooting deaths of Joseph Rosenbaum and Anthony Huber and the wounding of Gaige Grosskreutz (now Paul Prediger) during racial-justice protests. He has long maintained he acted in self-defense.
His case remains a lightning rod: supporters hail him as a symbol of gun rights, while critics argue he was a vigilante who went looking for conflict.