Actress Halle Berry has denied the accusations of her ex-husband, Olivier Martínez, who accuses the actress of physically assaulting their 12-year-old son, Maceo. According to court documents obtained by the celebrity-focused outlet Page Six, the French actor requested a temporary restraining order against his former wife. He accuses her of lunging at their son and grabbing him by the throat in events that would have occurred on September 26. In a statement released through her attorney, Berry said the lawsuit was “deliberately misleading.”
The actress’s attorney, Marina Beck, responded to Martínez’s allegations through a strong and biting statement. “To say that this complaint is entirely unfounded and is deliberately misleading would be an understatement,” the lawyer said. “There is substantial evidence, including court orders, that Olivier Martínez repeatedly violated court orders and interfered with the therapeutic and educational interventions necessary to the detriment of his minor son, Maceo, and Halle Berry’s son. A misconduct for which Mr. Martínez has already been legally sanctioned.”
The statement continued saying that “in a sense, today’s complaint is not entirely unexpected coming from a person with a well-documented history of erratic, possessive and violent behavior. Fortunately, Halle is used to this kind of scandalous conduct from Mr. Martínez and, although deeply saddened, she will not let that stop her from fighting for Maceo’s best interests and providing him with the love and support he needs.”
Two Contrasting Versions
In the publicly released court documents, Olivier Martínez alleged that the altercation began after an argument because their son was playing a virtual reality game. The actor claimed that Berry’s fiancé, the singer Van Hunt, was present. “The situation escalated and the plaintiff lunged at our son and began to physically fight with him,” he stated in the documents filed with the complaint.
Halle Berry and her current partner, the singer Van Hunt.
“He grabbed Maceo by the neck and started choking him while shouting: ‘Who’s boss now? Who’s in charge?!’,” the French actor elaborated in the publicly released court filings. Martínez also claimed that his son wrote to him from his mother’s house asking him to “come pick him up right now.” The text messages included in the documentation show Maceo’s message to his father, saying: “Are you here? Please, come.”
Olivier Martínez also claimed that this was not the first time Halle Berry has assaulted his son. “Over the last year and a half, Mrs. Berry has pushed Maceo to the ground and forced him to ‘surrender,’” he alleged in the documents. The actor filed on Thursday for a domestic violence restraining order against his ex-wife and has sought full custody of their son. The accusations have not yet been proven in court, and the lawsuit was filed in a Los Angeles court on October 1.
Halle Berry and Olivier Martínez: a tumultuous relationship
The two actors met in 2010 while co-starring in the action and thriller film Dark Tide. Halle Berry and Olivier Martínez became engaged in early 2012 and married in France in July 2013, welcoming their son, Maceo, a few months later. Their highly publicized romance frequently drew media attention, especially in late 2012 after a highly publicized physical altercation between Martínez and Berry’s former partner, Gabriel Aubry, but also due to custody arrangements related to Berry’s daughter.
After five years together, Berry and Martínez filed for divorce in October 2015. The ongoing disputes over child custody and financial arrangements stretched for nearly eight years. The divorce was formally resolved in August 2023, and both parties agreed to joint physical and legal custody of their son, along with the established arrangements for child support.
