Jesse Williams, 43, is back in court again, this time to seek equal joint physical custody of his kids, Sadie, 10, and Maceo, 9. We say again, because the Grey’s Anatomy actor has been in court several times, fighting for more time with his children.
According to court documents, Williams, who currently shares custody with his ex-wife, Aryn Drake-Lee, is asking for more time since the current agreement only allows him to have a maximum of two overnight stays during the school year.
“There is no question that spending more time with me is in the children’s best interests,” Williams said. “The children benefit from the love and stability I provide them, and they continually ask to spend more time with me. I am actively engaged in Sadie’s and Maceo’s lives.”
The actor also accuses his ex-wife of having a “bizarre obsession” with keeping him from participating in their kid’s extracurricular activities, irrespective of his efforts to foster a healthy co-parenting relationship. He explained in recent court documents that she’s interfering in his relationship with his children by blocking FaceTime calls, not allowing him to partake in various of their kids’ activities, and manipulating vacation schedules to minimize his time with their two kids. On these premises, Jackson claimed there is “good cause” for his kids to spend “less time” with Drake-Lee.
“I have never refused Aryn access to the children. I constantly try to exemplify normal, healthy coparenting behavior, hoping that she will see it works better than chaos and conflict,” Williams argued. “Aryn’s conduct is the opposite – designed to frustrate my custody and impair my relationship with the children, and she has no concern of the impact her conduct has on our children.”
The former couple initially met in 2007 while Williams was still a teacher in New York. They got married in 2012 after dating for five years. The Power actor filed for divorce from Drake-Lee in 2017, and they’ve been in and out of court over the kids and finances since. The divorce was finalized in 2020, at which Williams was ordered to pay $40,000 per month in child support, and both parties were awarded joint legal and physical custody of their kids. By February 2022, the former couple were back in court, with the actor accusing Drake-Lee of “repeated violation of court orders” and “erratic, gatekeeping behavior.”
That same year, after exiting Grey’s Anatomy, Williams’ child support payments were reduced to $6,413 a month.
