Halle Berry has responded to child abuse claims made by her ex-husband Olivier Martinez.
Last week, Martinez accused the Oscar winner of physically abusing their 13-year-old son, Maceo, with a court granting a temporary restraining order against the X-Men actor.
Berry, 60, who is best known for starring as Storm in the superhero trilogy as well as the Bond film Die Another Day, was married to French actor Martinez from 2013 until 2016, with the couple welcoming son Maceo the year they wed. Their split wasn’t finalized until 2023 after a lengthy divorce battle.
Now, Berry has fired back at the allegations against her. In a declaration filed October 5 and seen by People, Berry wrote: “I have never physically, emotionally, or otherwise abused Maceo. I am a victim of domestic violence, and I help victims of domestic violence.”
She continued, “I am not a perpetrator of violence. I would never hurt our child.”
Berry has previously said she was a victim of domestic violence growing up and also in an adult relationship, though the former partner she accused has not been identified.
The Catwoman star provided her own account of an alleged September 26 incident in which Martinez claimed Berry grew angry at their son while he played a video game, and that she put him in a headlock and choked him.
Berry not only denied Martinez’s allegations, but submitted video evidence and messages that “directly contradict” his account.
“My text messages to Olivier reflect my distress after Maceo became physically aggressive toward me, not any physical conduct by me toward Maceo,” she wrote, per People.
Berry alleged that she went into Maceo’s room to ask him to stop playing the video game. She was recording him, which he noticed and led to him grabbing Berry’s phone. They began “playfully roughhousing” as they “frequently do,” she stated, adding that she did not put her hands around his neck, choke or restrain him.
However, Berry stated that the incident escalated when Maceo “unexpectedly” became upset and pushed her. Berry’s fiancé Van Hunt then came upstairs, according to the documents.
Berry claimed her son then pushed her again, forcing Hunt to get between the two. She claimed that Maceo then threatened to call Martinez and leave the home. Berry allowed her son to spend the remainder of the weekend with Martinez.
“I told Olivier that I felt ‘terrible about what happened,’ which was true,” Berry wrote in her statement, adding that she was “upset” about what occurred.
Berry’s filing comes after Martinez was granted a temporary restraining order against the actor, covering both himself and Maceo, as of October 1, according to court documents seen by People.
In his petition to the court, Martinez alleged that Berry caused him “emotional and mental distress due to physical abuse of our minor child, Maceo”, the publication reported. He also claimed that the X-Men actor “grabbed Maceo by the neck and started choking him while shouting, ‘Who is dominant now? Who is dominant?’” during the alleged incident.
Martinez also reportedly alleged that Berry had engaged in “instances of abuse over the course of the last few years,” which included “additional physical attacks against our son, as well as verbal and emotional abuse from Petitioner to me.”
A hearing on Berry’s restraining order will take place October 16.
The Independent has contacted Berry and Martinez for comment.
