Halle Berry and Olivier Martinez are back in the headlines, and this time, the drama involves their son, Maceo, a virtual reality game, and some very serious allegations. Apparently, co-parenting peacefully is not always part of the celebrity starter pack.
Berry is pushing back against Martinez’s claim that she strangled their son over a VR game. The allegation has brought renewed attention to the former couple’s ongoing family dispute. And just like that, something that sounds like an ordinary gaming disagreement has become a much bigger legal and public relations battle.
In new court docs, obtained by TMZ, Halle fires back at Olivier’s claim that their 13-year-old son Maceo snapped the picture to prove “something happened” during last month’s alleged physical altercation.
Halle says the photo shows her standing calmly, hands in her pockets, several feet away from Maceo … and she says there’s no picture showing any bruises, redness or injuries to Maceo to back up Olivier’s claim about Maceo telling him she strangled their son.
She’s also defending boyfriend Van Hunt, who noted in his earlier declaration that he didn’t notice any marks on Maceo. Halle says Olivier is twisting Van’s words to suggest he inspected the boy for injuries … when he simply said he didn’t see any.
Let’s be honest. Video games can cause arguments in plenty of households. Parents complain about screen time. Kids insist they are almost finished. Then somebody gets upset because the controller has apparently become more important than the entire outside world.
But allegations involving harm to a child are far more serious than an ordinary family disagreement. Berry is contesting Martinez’s claim, and the allegation should not be treated as an established fact.
Halle isn’t stopping there, either … claiming Olivier is cherry-picking messages and leaving out key details to make her look bad.
She also claims Maceo’s behavior at school has gotten worse since a temporary restraining order was issued … with the boy reportedly landing a full week of disciplinary detention.
Olivier wants Maceo to have a chance to testify about the alleged incident. Halle has denied abusing him for playing a VR game, maintaining they were just playfully roughhousing before things went south.
Hopefully, the adults involved can find a way forward that protects their son’s well-being and keeps him away from unnecessary public drama.
Flip to the next page for the pictures…
