The chill has been building between Sophie Turner and Joe Jonas since their divorce was announced on September 5th—and judging by the latest developments in the burgeoning battle, winter is most certainly coming.
The Game of Thrones actress, 27, has hit back since her singer husband, 34, filed for divorce earlier this month after 4 years of marriage. Claiming that she “found out through the media that [Joe] had filed for divorce,” legal representatives for Sophie submitted a petition in a New York City court earlier today (September 21) calling for the immediate return of the couple’s two young daughters, aged 3 and 1 years old, to the actress’ home in England. This action follows directly on the heels of Sophie’s girl’s night with Joe’s super-famous ex, Taylor Swift, with the two being snapped grabbing dinner together at Via Carota in the Big Apple on Tuesday night.
Sophie Turner Files For 'Immediate Return' Of Daughters To England After Shock Divorce
Jonas Brothers bandleader Joe Jonas and X-Men: Apocalypse star Sophie Turner married after nearly 3 years of dating in May of 2019, and according to social media, things had been pretty blissful for a time, with the couple hunkering down together during COVID lockdown and posting many funny pictures and videos depicting their married life together. The pair's daughters followed in July of 2020 and July of 2022. Earlier this year the family relocated to the U.K., where they planned to set up their "forever home," as stated in the lawsuit. According to the filing, this entailed putting their Miami property on the market, shopping all of their children's belongings overseas, and even "[exchanging] contracts with the sellers" of a home in Oxfordshire, England—all in the months immediately preceding Joe filing for divorce this September.
In August, the couple agreed "with some hesitation" that the girls would go on tour with him while Sophie filmed a new TV series, Joan, in the U.K. The actress' filing states the decision was made so that "the children would then at least be able to spend some time during the day with one of their parents until the Mother finished her filming commitments," and was intended as a "temporary arrangement." It was allegedly agreed that Sophie would return to New York City to pick up their daughters after filming wrapped in September. However, before she was able to, Joe filed for divorce on September 5th, apparently blindsiding Sophie, whose representatives stated that she only "found out through the media" about the ending of her marriage, and not directly from her husband himself. A joint statement by the couple was released on September 6th to both of their Instagram accounts confirming the separation.
The Emmy nominee then returned to New York on September 17th to collect her daughters, but at this time, the lawsuit claims, the "Cake by the Ocean" crooner wouldn't let them leave. "The Father has prevented the children’s return to England, which is a breach of the Mother’s rights of custody under English law, England being the children’s habitual residence," the suit alleged. "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." Sophie's suit also accused Joe of lying in his divorce filing by claiming the couple's daughters had lived in Florida for the past 6 months: "The children are fully involved and integrated in all aspects of daily and cultural life in England. The children have extended family and friends in England...The children receive routine medical care and dental care in England. The older child attends school in England. Both children participate in extracurricular activities, playdates, and cultural activities in England." It has been indicated that the actress plans to file a similar lawsuit in the U.K.
Hitting back at the news earlier today, a representative for Joe told the media that "Joe 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 U.K. The children were born in the U.S. and have spent the vast majority of their lives in the U.S. They are American citizens...After being in Joe’s care for the past three months at the agreement of both parties, the children are currently with their mother," adding, "Sophie is making this claim only to move the divorce proceedings to the U.K. and to remove the children from the U.S. permanently." The representative also stated that Joe hopes his soon-to-be-ex wife will "reconsider her harsh legal position and move forward in a more constructive and private manner," and that "his only concern is the well-being of his children."
Joe Jonas' Ex Taylor Swift Seen Grabbing Dinner With Sophie After Divorce News
Sophie might not be interested in a compromise with Joe, however, if her recent actions are any indication. The Dark Phoenix star was seen very publicly grabbing dinner with none other than Taylor Swift, who famously dated Joe in 2008 and has penned songs about the short-lived romance since, including "Better Then Revenge" and "Forever & Always." Taylor and Sophie were snapped linking arms in New York City earlier this week as they headed to dinner at Via Carota, where they spent time chatting over their respective meals. Sophie has always considered herself a Swiftie, telling her TikTok followers in 2022 that Taylor's "[1989] is literally one of my favorite albums of all time."
A source that was present at the restaurant when the starlets arrived for their girls' night told People that "They were normal, completely normal...Everyone was all excited, but they were normal." Another source from Temple Bar, where the pair adjourned to after their meal, told the publication that "Sophie seemed to be enjoying the night." One insider remarked, "Taylor is a great friend—Sophie can talk to her about anything. It cheered Sophie up to spend time with Taylor."
One person who was probably not super pleased by the gals' very public outing? "Mr. Perfectly Fine" himself—Joe Jonas.
