Chris Watts never gave a clear, satisfying reason for why he murdered his pregnant wife Shanann and their daughters, and there is no single agreed‑upon motive. Most explanations are inferential, pieced together from his behavior, finances, affair, and what’s been discussed in court records, documentaries, and forum threads.

Below is a synthesis of how Reddit and other public discussions tend to answer “why did Chris Watts kill his family,” plus where the conversation is today.

Quick Scoop: Core Motives People Discuss

Most long‑form discussions and forum analyses describe a mix of factors rather than one cause.

Commonly cited elements:

  • He was having an affair and wanted a new, “clean slate” life without the responsibilities of a wife and three kids (including an unborn son).
  • The family was under serious financial strain, with high debt and a lifestyle that was hard to maintain.
  • He did not want to pay child support, split assets, or stay involved as a father after divorce.
  • He showed extreme emotional detachment from his children and wife, suggesting a very shallow or disturbed inner life.
  • Some Reddit users describe him as “pathologically conflict‑avoidant,” arguing he chose murder rather than face the mess of separation and divorce.

None of these explanations “justify” what he did; they’re attempts to understand a decision that remains fundamentally shocking and irrational.

How Reddit Talks About It

Because your focus includes “why did chris watts kill his family reddit,” it’s useful to look at how Redditors frame it.

Main themes in Reddit threads

You’ll often see posts in subreddits like r/TrueCrimeDiscussion and r/Chriswatts that emphasize:

  1. A selfish escape plan
    • Users point to evidence that he had already told multiple people he was separating or divorcing Shanann: family, friends, his mistress, the kids’ school, even a realtor.
 * This makes it clear he _could_ have left without killing anyone, which is part of what horrifies people: he chose murder over walking away.
  1. Money and image over everything
    • Some commenters argue he cared intensely about appearances and control, while the family was deeply in debt and “living above their means.”
 * The theory goes that divorce plus debt plus child support would damage his self‑image and future plans, so he tried to erase the problem instead.
  1. Hatred and dehumanization
    • Many posts note how he spoke about his kids as “those kids,” which people read as emotional distance and dehumanization.
 * Others highlight how he allowed the public narrative, for a time, to suggest Shanann killed the kids, which they see as proof of extreme callousness.
  1. Conflict avoidance to a deadly extreme
    • A popular Reddit framing is that he was so allergic to confrontation (about divorce, money, responsibility) that he chose the most catastrophic “solution” imaginable.
 * One recent Reddit post literally argues “Chris Watts killed his family because he was pathologically conflict avoidant.”

Mini Sections: Motive Angles People Debate

1. Affair + “Fresh Start” fantasy

Many analyses start with his affair:

  • He was involved with a co‑worker who, according to discovery details often discussed on Reddit, was looking up things like wedding dresses and “will your married lover leave his wife?” online.
  • Around the same time, he was reportedly googling high‑end sports cars and other “single guy” lifestyle items not suited to a family.

This feeds the idea that he wanted an entirely new identity: new partner, new image, no kids, no obligations.

2. Financial pressure and control

Reddit threads repeatedly mention:

  • Prior bankruptcy and tens of thousands of dollars in credit‑card debt.
  • A house that was expensive to maintain, plus MLM‑style business activity and medical costs for the kids.

The theory: he saw divorce as financially ruinous (house sale, division of assets, child support), and killing his family was his twisted way to “keep everything” and avoid long‑term obligations.

3. Personality: shallow affect and detachment

People who watch interrogation videos and phone calls highlight:

  • His flat affect, odd phrasing, and repeated reference to his daughters as “those kids” instead of “my girls” or “my babies.”
  • His willingness to let a narrative spread that Shanann killed the children, even after his arrest, before finally admitting what he did.

On Reddit, this is often cited as evidence of:

  • Profound emotional detachment.
  • Narcissistic, self‑protective thinking.
  • A capacity to dehumanize even his own children.

4. Planned vs impulsive

There’s an ongoing debate:

  • Some users argue it was premeditated : he knew his work site (oil tanks, remote location), had a tight timeline, and seemed to have at least thought about where to dump the bodies.
  • Others see it as a rage or panic decision after confronting Shanann, then “doubling down” by killing the children to eliminate witnesses and obligations.

Most serious discussions land somewhere in between: some planning, some impulsivity, all wrapped in extreme selfishness and moral emptiness.

Bullet‑Point Snapshot: “Why Did He Do It?” (Forum View)

Putting the Reddit‑style reasoning in one place:

  • Wanted to be with his mistress and live a new, unencumbered life.
  • Felt trapped by debt, impending third child, and family responsibilities.
  • Did not want the financial and emotional costs of divorce and child support.
  • Was deeply conflict‑avoidant and chose annihilation over confrontation.
  • Showed emotional detachment and a capacity for extreme lying and self‑pity.
  • Likely overestimated his ability to hide the crime and underestimated how quickly he would be caught.

None of this explains the moral leap from fantasy to action, which is why people still say “I cannot fathom why he chose this.”

Current and “Latest” Reddit Context

Even years later, the case still trends periodically:

  • New Reddit posts appear whenever a documentary drops, a phone call or interview resurfaces, or someone re‑examines the psychology of “family annihilators.”
  • There are also controversial subs that try to shift blame onto Shanann or “re‑litigate” her personality and social media presence, which many users criticize as victim‑blaming.
  • Moderated true‑crime communities often push back on these narratives and re‑center the fact that Watts alone made the choice to kill his wife and children.

So “why did Chris Watts kill his family” remains a trending true‑crime and forum topic, partly because the motives feel both banal (affair, money, ego) and unimaginably extreme at the same time.

TL;DR (Bottom)

Chris Watts killed his family not for one clear reason, but out of a mix of selfish motives: an affair, desire for a “fresh start,” financial pressure, avoidance of divorce and child support, and deep emotional detachment from his wife and children. Reddit discussions frame him less as “snapping” and more as a profoundly selfish, conflict‑avoidant man who chose the most extreme, unforgivable way to escape the life he had built.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.