Jesse Williams Accuses Ex of "Gatekeeping" Their Kids in Court Docs
Originally appeared on E! Online
Jesse Williams is reigniting his custody battle with ex-wife Aryn Drake-Lee.
The Grey's Anatomy alum filed a request on Sept. 10 to change their custody agreement over daughter Sadie, 10, and son Maceo, 9, alleging that Drake-Lee has been "gatekeeping" their kids from him for the last seven years.
"I have never refused Aryn access to the children," Williams said in a signed declaration obtained by E! News Sept. 13. "I constantly try to exemplify normal, healthy coparenting behavior in the hope that she will see it works better than chaos and conflict."
He continued in the court documents, "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 43-year-old said Drake-Lee would often "weaponize access to the children," including disrupting his FaceTime calls with the kids and excluding him from their afterschool activities.
More from E! Online
Williams is requesting that his and Drake-Lee's custody schedule—which was set in 2017, shortly after he filed for divorce to end their marriage of nearly five years—be altered to have the kids at his house Wednesday to Friday and at Drake-Lee's place Monday to Wednesday, with the former couple splitting weekends evenly.
According to Williams, the current schedule is "unnecessarily challenging for our children and causes unnecessary interactions between me and Aryn."
"A 50/50 custody schedule is in the children’s best interests," he wrote in court docs. "There is no question that spending more time with me is in the children’s best interests. The children benefit from the love and stability I provide them, and they continually ask to spend more time with me."
Accusing Drake-Lee of having a "personal vendetta" against him, Williams argued that updating the current custody agreement "is one of several ways the court can stop the pattern of rewarding Aryn’s toxic, obstructive behavior."
"The children and I are crazy about each other, and we have a deeply loving, active and closely bonded relationship," he added. "There is absolutely no reason why Aryn should have more custodial time with the children than me."
E! News has reached out to Drake-Lee for comment but hasn't heard back.
Williams and Drake-Lee's legal battle spans back to almost a decade, with the pair contending over custody arrangements, child support and COVID-19 protocols.
Back in 2022, Drake-Lee appeared to hint at issues with her and Williams' custody agreement, writing in a cryptic Instagram post while the actor was performing in the New York Broadway play Take Me Out, "Is it good for the health and wellness of a 7yr and 8yr old to be taken out of school on a regular basis to fly cross country overnight on a red eye to be on the ground for two days?"
"Is it reasonable for them to return dazed and confused and then be expected to pick right up and survive at school the rest of the week?" she continued at the time. "I don't think so! Neither do any of the parents who actually parent on a routine basis."
For the latest breaking news updates, click here to download the E! News App
