Grey’s Anatomy star Jesse Williams has accused his estranged wife of repeatedly slamming the front door on his leg while yelling at him in front of their two young children, according to explosive new court documents.
Williams, 36, who divorced Aryn Drake-Lee in April, has been embroiled in a nasty custody battle over their children Sadie, three, and Maceo, one, ever since.
He claims Drake-Lee, 34, has stopped him from spending time with the kids, rarely answers the phone when he tries to FaceTime them and bars him from making any decisions regarding their lives, according to legal papers.
Grey’s Anatomy star Jesse Williams (pictured together in 2016) divorced Aryn Drake-Lee in April
The actor flatly denies Drake-Lee’s claims that he is an unfit parent – filed in court papers earlier this month – as completely false.
In the papers, filed at Los Angeles Superior Court on Thursday, Williams says: ‘I can certainly care for Sadie and Maceo without assistance and did so on many occasions during our marriage.
‘Like Aryn I should have sufficient time with Sadie and Maceo each week, including overnights, to continue to strengthen the very special bond I share with them and share equally int he parenting role.
‘Aryn’s clear intent, as shown throughout her testimony is to marginalize and dismiss me as a parent, micromanage my time with the children and to exclude me from all decision regarding out children, no matter how important.’
He added that he has always paid a ‘constant and significant role in their lives’ attending medical appointments, school events and other activities.
Williams denies Drake-Lee’s claims that he bullies her or turns up to her home ‘unannounced’ and says his estranged wife is the aggressive one – who even once attacked him in a doorway.
‘The only aggression our children have witnessed between us occurred during the numerous times Aryn has screamed at me in their presence, including disparaging me and, after we separated when she repeatedly slammed the front door on my left leg while yelling at me in front of the children.’
Williams said that working full time on Grey’s Anatomy does not stop him from being a ‘doting parent’ and claims he does all he can to ‘free up as much time as possible’ to spend with the kids.
He admits missing his daughter Sadie’s pre-school graduation ceremony because he had an ‘out-of-town obligation’ but says that despite arranging to FaceTime during the event, Drake-Lee refused to answer his calls.
The actor accuses Drake-Lee of ‘severely restricting’ his time with the kids over the past five months and routinely leaving him out of decisions regarding them.
She also refuses to let her children enjoy overnight stays with their father, according to the court documents.
‘I have never been, and all never be an absentee parent as Aryn implies,’ he said.
‘Aryn has severely restricted my custodial time with the children these past five months and has routinely denied me the joint legal custodial right to make decisions that affect the children.
‘It is hard enough for young children like ours to go one month without having meaningful contact with me, going five months has been completely devastating to them and me.’
The couple (pictured in 2013) have been embroiled in a nasty custody battle over their children
Williams (pictured in Grey’s Anatomy) claims Drake-Lee, 34, has stopped him from spending time with the kids
The father-of-two says his wife won’t answer the phone ‘half the times’ he tries to call the children – and when she does answer she does not point the screen at the kids, leaving him ‘talking to a blank wall’ on what he describes as a ‘sad and painful routine’.
Williams claims his ex never told him she was taking the kids on a six day trip to Newport Beach, or that they were having speech therapy or seeing a homeopathist.
He also says she never told him about signing up Maceo for soccer but then complained about his ‘lack of attendance’ in actions he describes as ‘unreal’.
The TV star slams his ex for refusing to communicate with him about the children or share any information about their well-being.
He also cites a nightmare that his daughter Sadie had had before saying Drake-Lee then blamed him for it in legal papers.
Williams said: ‘Had Aryn truly intended to co-parent, she would have discussed the nightmare with me.’
The actor also says Drake-Lee won’t allow him consecutive days with the kids, including on weekends.
Williams claims she also refused to allow him to take the children on a planned trip to Maine to spend time with his family.
He added: ‘I then asked Aryn to let the children stay with me locally, with Maritza (the nanny), for a three-day staycation. Arun again refused.’
On allegations that Williams doesn’t properly feed his children when they are with him, the actor states: ‘I of course feed the children and Aryn’s complaints that the children have been very hungry and request full meals are no doubt exaggeration.’
In a dispute over allowing the children to nap in the car Williams also accuses his estranged wife of admitting she ‘consumed alcohol’ in her car, with the car not running, while the children were napping.
The star added: ‘Aryn is unilaterally parenting our children without any inout from me; her marginalizing of me as their father is deeply disconcerting.’
In response to Drake-Lee’s allegation that Williams had been in a road rage incident with their neighbor, Williams requested that it be disregarded.
He said: ‘Aryn did not ask the police, me or even the neighbor about the incident. Instead, she admits when he approached her she told him not to talk to her.’
In previous court documents Williams’ estranged wife slammed the actor over his parenting skills, claiming he suffers violent rages and worries he exposes their two children to a ‘revolving door’ of women.
Drake-Lee claims the actor’s multiple girlfriends and fits of rage are affecting the emotional well-being of their offspring.
She listed a slew of reasons why she believes she should have sole custody of the children after their 14-year relationship broke down.
Williams has been linked with his one-time co-worker, actress Minka Kelly (pictured in 2015)
Drake-Lee, according to the docs, wants a judge to order the actor to keep his romantic partners away from the children until he hits the six-month dating mark.
When the former couple’s divorce first hit the headlines, it was reported that Williams cheated on Drake-Lee with multiple women while they were married and he’s been linked with his one-time co-worker, actress Minka Kelly.
Williams has denied the cheating claims saying he always ‘loved’ Drake-Lee during their marriage.
In the previous filing Drake-Lee says the Los Angeles based star regularly jets away on trips to Paris, New York, Florida and within California, adding: ‘I am concerned about what Jesse defines as “business” or “work”, what is real, speculation, or lies.
‘Jesse had provided me little, if anything, upon which to establish trust in his representations.’
She said the star recently missed his daughter Sadie’s preschool graduation because he said he had to ‘work’ by going to a celebrity soccer game in Miami.
He also missed two Father’s Day celebrations at Sadie’s school, for which Drake-Lee had to attend as a substitute, the documents allege.
Williams and Drake-Lee had a 14-year relationship, and were married for five.
Drake-Lee – who has worked in real estate and the art world as well as managing her husband’s career — was Williams’ rock and the main breadwinner until the actor scored a role on ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ in 2009.
She previously told the court that Williams is not ‘putting our children’s needs first’, adding: ‘His actions demonstrate disrespect to our children and me, and put me in a tough spot as a parent.’
Drake-Lee is asking the court for a full-day mediation session to determine a ‘path forward’ between her and Williams.