Stars who have been involved in ugly custody battles

Jesse Williams and his ex-wife, Aryn Drake-Lee, have finally settled their long child custody dispute. It started in 2017 when Drake-Lee requested sole custody of their two children, Sadie and Maceo, but they were granted joint custody in 2018. After several disagreements over their custody arrangement, in April 2020, the 'Grey's Anatomy' actor and the real estate broker, who were married from 2012 to 2017, were ordered to participate in an educational course called Between Two Parents, designed specifically as a "high conflict parents program." A judge also denied Drake-Lee's initial request to reduce Williams' custodial time, but approved her request to set a strict cancellation policy when it comes to spending time with their kids. Drake-Lee also won "tie-breaking authority" if the two can't agree on planning extracurricular activities for their children. Additionally, the judge encouraged the parents to find a "third-party coordinator or counselor" to help them with smaller disputes that will inevitably arise so that they don't keep bringing it back to court.

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Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt - After a high-profile separation and eventual divorce, custody of the couple's six children was initially awarded to their mother, Angelina Jolie, reported Pop Sugar.

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Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt - Far from resolving the dispute, Angelina Jolie has been stopped from taking her kids outside of the US as she travels, according to Page Six. In 2021, Pitt was awarded joint custody over the couple's five minor children.

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Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise - The couple's divorce was a rocky one, and the pair ended up in court fighting for custody of their daughter Suri, who eventually ended up with her mother, according to ABC News.

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Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise - Some tabloids have reported that the actor hadn't seen his daughter since 2013. Communication between the former married couple has apparently broken down completely, according to Huffington Post.

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Britney Spears and Kevin Federline - After their divorce, sole custody of the couple's children was handed to ex-spouse Federline after Spears lost joint custody in the wake of her erratic behavior in 2007, noted People.

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Britney Spears and Kevin Federline - After the highs and lows, the singer did not manage to gain custody of her kids, though today they are reportedly have a good relationship.

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Madonna and Guy Ritchie - According to The Guardian, after more than a year of squabbling, Madonna and ex-husband Guy Ritchie finally agreed that son Rocco would stay with his father in London while Madonna would be free to visit the youngster anytime she desired.

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Stephen Belafonte and Mel B - Ex-Spice Girl Mel B and her former husband, businessman Stephen Belafonte, are fighting in court over custody of 10-year-old Angel, who is the singer's daughter with actor Eddie Murphy. For his part, Murphy has stated that he has no interest in keeping in touch with his daughter, according to the Daily Mail.

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Kaká and Carolina Celico - The Brazilian soccer player and his businesswoman wife were married for 10 years. After their divorce, the couple's children stayed in Brazil with their mother, revealed the Orlando Sentinel.

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Antonio Banderas and Melanie Griffith - After their divorce, the couple went to court to determine who would win custody of their children and, oddly, several pet animals, noted the Daily Mail.

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Mel Gibson and Oksana Grigorieva - After divorcing, the pair met again in court for the right to look after their daughter, Lucia. In order to minimize any adverse effect the case might have on the youngster, Gibson decided not to fight for custody. The little girl now lives with her mother, reported Radar On Line.

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Usher and Tameka Foster - The custody battle over the couple's two children dragged on for a long time. The judge eventually ruled that the kids should stay with their father, according to People.

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Halle Berry and Gabriel Aubry - The Mirror reported on a troubled and sometimes violent custody battle which only ended when the couple's daughter, Nahla, went to live with her father.

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Charlie Sheen and Denise Richards - The couple went their separate ways in 2006, soon after the custody of their daughters was awarded to their mother, reported the Daily Mail.

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Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger - The two fought long and hard for custody of their daughter, Ireland. Initially the girl went to live with her mother. Later, however, joint custody was awarded to both parents, according to People.

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Anne Heche and Coley Laffoon - Divorced after five years of marriage, both fought bitterly for the custody of their son, Homer. Two years later a judge ruled in favor of the father as Heche was by then in LA filming the series 'Men in Trees'. Both would eventually hire a parenting coordinator to manage their relationships with their son, as noted by People.

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Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee - Years spent in court trading blows over custody of their kids finally ended when both agreed to share the upbringing of kids Dylan and Brandon, splashed the Daily Mail.

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Woody Allen and Mia Farrow - A highly publicized 1992 divorce saw the filmmaker marry Mia's adopted daughter, Soon-Yi Previn, five years later. In court, a judge denied Allen custody of their three children after Farrow accused him of sexually assaulting Dylan—the couple's adopted daughter—when she was seven, according to the New York Times.

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Paul McCartney and Heather Mills - After a protracted time in the courts fighting over their daughter's custody and a financial compensation package, an agreement was reached whereby both would share custody, reported The Guardian.

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David Hasselhoff and Pamela Bach - A judge decreed that the actor would enjoy near full custody of their daughters, but granted his ex-wife visitation rights on alternate weekends and Wednesday nights, noted People.

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Uma Thurman and Arpad Busson - The Daily Mail reported that after they broke up, Thurman's ex-fiancé went to court to try and win custody of their daughter, Luna.

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Charlie Sheen and Brooke Mueller - After divorcing, the pair agreed to the shared custody of their children. However, when Sheen's previous wife Denise Richards won exclusive custody of the child they had together, the court awarded Brooke similar rights, reported the Daily Mail.

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Scarlett Johansson and Romain Dauriac - The New York Post reported on the actress's divorce from her husband, Frenchman Romain Dauriac. She subsequently won the court battle over custody of daughter Rose Dorothy Dauriac.

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Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown - Her problems with drugs and his domestic violence issues saw them both in court to battle it out for custody of daughter Bobbi Kristina, who eventually went to live with her mother, noted People.

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Harvey Keitel and Lorraine Bracco - Although never married, the pair had a daughter, Stella. After six years slogging it out in court, Bracco secured sole custody of her daughter while her father was granted visitation rights, according to the Independent.

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Kelly Rutherford and Daniel Giersch - Divorce and a long drawn out court action eventually saw them both agreeing on shared custody of their offspring, reported Vanity Fair.

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Tyga and Blac Chyna - The pair were soon in court after the relationship ended, and pitted against each other over the right to look after their son. In the end they agreed to joint custody, noted Daily Mail.

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Brynn Cameron and Blake Griffin - The NBA pro has requested custody of the two children he has with ex-girlfriend, Brynn Cameron. The subsequent legal battle has drawn in Kendall Jenner, hitherto Griffin's girlfriend, according to the Daily Mail.

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Stars who have been involved in ugly custody battles

Olivia Wilde served custody papers from Jason Sudeikis live on stage at CinemaCon

28/04/22 | StarsInsider

CELEBRITY Celebrities

The end of a relationship is never easy, and it's even worse when there are children involved. For personalities in the public spotlight, the situation can be especially difficult, and when celebrities divorce it often ends in a court battle over the children. Some cases go on for years.

Olivia Wilde and Jason Sudeikis were together for 10 years before what appeared to be a rather sudden split in 2020. The two share a son, Otis, and a daughter, Daisy, and have reportedly been working out their co-parenting arrangement ever since. Things took an ugly turn on April 27 when Wilde was giving a presentation about her new movie, 'Don’t Worry Darling,' at CinemaCon. She was interrupted in the middle of her speech as an unknown woman handed her a manila envelope on stage. Wilde looked confused and asked "This is for me? Is this for me?" She took a moment to open the envelope and glance at the documents inside before continuing the presentation without acknowledging the incident.

It was later revealed that the unknown woman had been a process server hired by Sudeikis's lawyers to deliver documents regarding their custody agreement. Sources say that Sudeikis had no idea that the papers would be delivered in this manner and never would have condoned it.

Check out the gallery and see the celebrities who have already battled it out in court for custody of their children.