Jesse Williams, 41, was handed a victory in his custody battle with his ex-wife Aryn Drake-Lee, 40. The former spouses appeared in court on September 30 and the Grey’s Anatomy alum was granted various visitation days with his son Maceo, 7, and daughter Sadie, 8, according to People. Jesse’s kids can now visit him during the fall in New York City, where the actor is temporarily moving for his role in the Broadway show Take Me Out. Aryn, who lives in Los Angeles with the kids, was arguing against the visitation.
The court also reportedly ordered Jesse and Aryn to complete ten sessions of co-parenting counseling. The exes are “restrained from making derogatory remarks about the other party, either directly or indirectly to the minor children, nor allow any third party to do so”, according to People. Jesse and Aryn also cannot discuss the custody case in front of their children, nor can they post “derogatory remarks” about each other on social media, per the judge’s ruling.
Aryn reacted to the visitation ruling on social media, writing, “It turns out the court does think it’s good for children to regularly fly on overnight flights to accommodate a parent who won’t do the same for them. Who knew? I knew.” The real estate broker also said she’s keeping her “head held high” and her “integrity in tact” amidst her custody battle with Jesse.
Jesse had requested to change a prior custody agreement involving his visitation with his children in September. The actor accused his ex of not extending their previous court-ordered custody arrangement for his original Broadway run in spring 2022 to his new set of shows, according to TMZ. “The play is set to start in October 2022 and run through at least January 2023. I am returning to New York in early October to start rehearsals. I asked Aryn to honor the Court’s prior order so I can continue to spend quality time with our children while I am in New York. Aryn refused,” he claimed in court documents.
Jesse and Aryn got married in 2012, but Jesse filed for divorce just five years later. Their divorce was finalized in Oct. 2020. The former couple’s separation has not been smooth, and in April 2021, both Jesse and Aryn were ordered to attend online classes for “high conflict parents”, per TMZ, after they were clashing over a custody agreement.
