Olivier Martinez is asking a judge to hear directly from his 13-year-old son with Halle Berry as their custody dispute continues. He says Maceo wants to explain an alleged confrontation at his mother’s home.
The request appears in court papers obtained by PEOPLE and reported Oct. 12. Martinez is also challenging the involvement of Berry’s adult daughter, Nahla Aubry, who submitted a declaration supporting her mother.
Berry denies physically or emotionally abusing their son. Her attorney, Marina Beck, has called Martinez’s allegations “entirely meritless and deliberately misleading.”
The former spouses are seeking competing changes to their parenting arrangement in Los Angeles Superior Court. As of Oct. 13, no ruling authorizing Maceo’s testimony or excluding Nahla’s declaration had been reported.
Martinez Says Maceo Is Worried He Won’t Be Believed
Martinez says his son wants to discuss his custody preferences as well as the events of Sept. 26. “He should have the opportunity to have his voice heard regarding what he experienced that night,” he wrote in the declaration.
He claimed Maceo felt earlier complaints about his mother had been dismissed. Martinez also expressed concern that Berry would try to prevent their son from addressing the judge, arguing that denying him that opportunity could discourage him from reporting concerns in the future.
The filing describes a photograph Martinez says Maceo took of Berry after the encounter and before his father arrived to collect him. According to Us Weekly, Martinez contended that his son took the photograph because he feared his account would not be believed without supporting evidence.
He Calls Nahla’s Account Irrelevant and Biased
Halle Berry’s daughter Nahla, 18, speaks out over mom’s abuse claims in rare statement: docs https://t.co/FMXMj8fhiN https://t.co/Tkm3KmnkXC
— New York Post (@nypost) October 7, 2026
Martinez argued that Nahla’s account had little bearing on the case and that Berry should not involve her daughter in the litigation. “Ms. Aubry is unquestionably biased,” he wrote in the documents obtained by Us Weekly.
Nahla, 18, is Berry’s daughter with former partner Gabriel Aubry and Maceo’s older half-sister. In her Oct. 3 declaration, she said she had never witnessed Berry physically abuse her brother or behave violently toward anyone.
She described Berry as a parent who enforced rules while remaining involved in the children’s activities, education and medical care. Nahla also said her mother encouraged both children to maintain relationships with their fathers. Her statement concerned years of observing their family life, but she did not say she witnessed the disputed encounter.
Berry Describes the Encounter as Roughhousing That Became an Argument
Martinez alleges that Berry put her hands around Maceo’s neck and choked him during a disagreement involving a virtual reality headset. He sought sole legal and physical custody, saying changes were necessary to protect their son.
In her Oct. 5 response, obtained by PEOPLE, Berry described playful roughhousing that developed into an argument. She submitted video and text messages that she said contradicted Martinez’s account.
Berry asked to restore the equal parenting time established after their 2023 divorce and sought continued co-parenting counseling. Her lawyers also accused Martinez of obstructing educational and therapeutic support. Martinez disputed her portrayal of his involvement in their son’s medical care, according to TMZ.
California Allows Children Under 14 to Address Custody Courts
Under California’s Family Code Section 3042, a judge may hear directly from a child younger than 14 about custody or visitation when doing so is appropriate for the child’s best interests. For children 14 and older who want to speak, the court must generally allow it unless the judge finds that participation would not serve their best interests.
The statute does not require a child to express a custody preference. If the judge decides against calling the child as a witness, the court must provide another way to obtain the child’s input.
California’s court rules identify alternatives including mediation and interviews with custody evaluators. They also generally require arrangements that let children address the court outside their parents’ presence, although a judge can make an exception and explain the reasons on the record.
The Temporary Order Allows Berry Daytime Visits
Olivier Martinez filed a petition for a restraining order against ex-wife Halle Berry, alleging that she physically abused their 12-year-old son. He also requested sole legal custody of the preteen. https://t.co/KYzSYVc0b2 https://t.co/469zZOeaXo
— E! News (@enews) October 2, 2026
A judge granted Martinez a temporary restraining order on Oct. 1 covering him and Maceo, while permitting Berry specified daytime visits. The judge declined Martinez’s request for sobriety testing, according to the Los Angeles Times, which reviewed the order.
Berry subsequently submitted a certificate confirming completion of the court’s Our Children First parenting orientation, TMZ reported Oct. 7. The program provides parent education and an introduction to custody mediation. The next hearing on the restraining-order request and custody dispute is scheduled for Friday, Oct. 16.