The “Dark Phoenix” actress, Sophie Turner, claims she found out her ex-husband Joe Jonas’ plan to end their marriage in an unconventional way “through the media.” She says the breakdown of their marriage happened “very suddenly” after an argument on August 15.
The Game of Thrones actress, 27, stated in a complaint she filed in a Manhattan court on Thursday that she learned of Jonas’ divorce filing “through the media.”
On Aug. 15, Jonas’ 34th birthday, the couple experienced a “breakdown” in their four-year marriage, which the actress describes as occurring “very suddenly” following “an argument.” Three weeks later, on September 5, he filed for divorce in Miami.
The filing indicated that “the marriage between the parties is irretrievably broken.”
In a complaint she filed on Thursday, Turner demanded the return of her two children, Willa, 3 years old, and D., a 14-month-old daughter, to England.
The complaint filed against Jonas, 34, requests “the immediate return of children wrongfully removed or wrongfully retained,” with Turner’s legal team claiming the “wrongful retention” began on September 20.
Turner claimed that she and the musician decided to make England their “forever home” during chats throughout the holiday season as they prepared for the next year. The filings state that after Jonas joined The Jonas Brothers on tour, they consented to allow the girls move in with him because he had greater daytime availability than Turner did while she was filming, though Turner expressed “hesitation” about the “temporary arrangement.”
According to Turner’s petition, the custody issue arose when the two met to discuss the next steps following their divorce two weeks later, at which point she “reiterated” her decision to move to England and was met with a change of heart by Jonas.
“The Father has possession of the children’s passports. He refuses to return the passports to the Mother and refuses to send the children home to England with the Mother”, based on the documents.
A spokesman for Jonas, 34, provided a statement obtained by PEOPLE on Thursday in response to his separated wife’s lawsuit alleging he is refusing to let the couple’s two children to return to England.
“After multiple conversations with Sophie, Joe initiated divorce proceedings in Florida, as Florida is the appropriate jurisdiction for the case. Sophie was aware that Joe was going to file for divorce. The Florida Court has already entered an order that restricts both parents from relocating the children. Sophie was served with this order on September 6, 2023, more than two weeks ago,” the statement reads.
“Joe and Sophie had a cordial meeting this past Sunday in New York, when Sophie came to New York to be with the kids,” the statement continued. “They have been with her since that meeting. Joe’s impression of the meeting was that they had reached an understanding that they would work together towards an amicable co-parenting setup.”
The statement claimed that less than 24 hours after the “amicable co-parenting setup” was agreed upon, “Sophie advised that she wanted to take the children permanently to the UK. Thereafter, she demanded via this filing that Joe hand over the children’s passports so that she could take them out of the country immediately.”
The statement further stated that the musician is ”seeking shared parenting with the kids so that they are raised by both their mother and father, and is, of course, also okay with the kids being raised both in the U.S. and the UK,” but also alleged that the children ”have spent the vast majority of their lives in the U.S.”
Willa has dual citizenship in England and the United States, according to the statement.
“This is an unfortunate legal disagreement about a marriage that is sadly ending. … The children were not abducted,” the statement read.
“After being in Joe’s care for the past three months at the agreement of both parties, the children are currently with their mother,” the statement continued.
“Joe has already disavowed any and all statements purportedly made on his behalf that were disparaging of Sophie,” the statement concluded. “They were made without his approval and are not consistent with his views. His wish is that Sophie reconsider her harsh legal position and move forward in a more constructive and private manner. His only concern is the well-being of his children.”
