Joshua Jackson and Jodie Turner-Smith's Tumultuous Divorce Explained: Claims, Custody Battle, More
Jodie Turner-Smith and Joshua Jackson were married for four years before she filed for divorce in October 2023. They reached a divorce settlement in May 2025.
After one year of dating, the pair tied the knot in 2019 and welcomed daughter Juno together in April 2020. As they hashed out the terms of their divorce, from child support to custody, the couple still managed to be coparents for their child.
'It's just about — center the children and that's all you can do,' Turner-Smith told Entertainment Tonight in November 2024 of parenting while navigating her breakup. 'Nobody gets everything right but at least when you know you're focused on the right thing, you know you're gonna do your best.'
Despite their split, Turner-Smith said she doesn't view her marriage to Jackson as a failure. 'Sometimes things we really want to work just don't end up working,' she said in a February 2025 interview with the U.K.'s The Times. 'And that's OK. The most important thing is that you choose what's healthiest for you and your family and definitely your children.'
Keep scrolling for a look inside Jackson and Turner-Smith's divorce:
Us Weekly confirmed Turner-Smith filed for divorce from Jackson after four years of marriage. Per court documents, the actress cited 'irreconcilable differences' as the reason for their split and was seeking joint custody of their daughter. Their date of separation was listed as September 13, 2023.
'Joshua was clearly caught off guard by Jodie's decision to divorce,' a source exclusively told Us at the time. 'They had their issues, as many couples do — especially two busy actors who are also juggling a child. Joshua obviously didn't realize it was this bad, that Jodie was this unhappy.'
Jackson countered Turner-Smith's divorce petition with a request to change the date of separation from September 13 to September 30, per court documents obtained by Us. The documents also showed that Jackson asked the court to terminate the ability of either party to pay child support, requesting they both pay lawyer fees.
Turner-Smith alleged in court documents obtained by Us that her estranged husband had failed to pay her both child and spousal support since news of their separation broke in October 2023. She requested he pay her $8,543 per month retroactive to the date of her initial filing, as well as $28,641 per month in spousal support while their divorce proceedings continue.
Turner-Smith also asked that the court order the Dawson's Creek alum to pay her $250,000 to cover the cost of legal fees. She argued that Jackson had made more money than her during their marriage, accusing him of piling up the attorney's fees by further dragging out their divorce.
In her filing, Turner-Smith claimed Jackson had "promised to always support' her and 'ensured' her that she would 'not have to worry about financial security for our daughter if we ever separated because he said he understood how difficult life can be as a Black woman and a single mother."
Turner-Smith claimed her estranged husband was not only refusing her custody time with their daughter, but was allegedly attempting to strip her of legal custody. Us confirmed that Turner-Smith's attorney Laura Wasser had filed a declaration accusing Jackson of refusing to 'allow Jodie to have custodial time' with their daughter while the actress was filming in London.
Wasser attended over eight hours of mediation in regards to Turner-Smith's request for custodial time in the summer and fall of 2024. The paperwork also stated that Jackson could be deposed because he and Turner-Smith had not worked out a custody deal for spring and summer 2025. Us reached out to Jackson's rep for comment at the time.
Jackson expressed concern over becoming estranged from his daughter due to the divorce. "If I ever did anything to estrange my daughter from myself, I would be in duress," Jackson said during an episode of the 'Dinner's On Me' podcast. "I actually can't conceive of it because I don't even wanna think of the pain that that would be."
The Doctor Odyssey star continued, "Regardless of how messy the divorce is, beautiful the divorce is, easy [or] hard the co-parenting is ... I think this generation of dads is understanding, like, 'I need to be here. It's gonna be hard, but this is important, and I've got to do this.' It's my job — shared with my ex-wife — to do everything that we can to nurture you, cultivate you and give you all the tools that you need in life."
Court documents, per TMZ, showed the couple agreed on most of the terms of their divorce, save for the matter of where their daughter should attend elementary school. Turner-Smith reportedly requested a court order for her to have the power to choose her child's school, so that she can move her daughter to a new school the following year. Jackson, however, has not agreed.
Per the docs, the estranged couple came up with a temporary 50-50 custody schedule via a mediator, with Jackson allegedly paying $2,787 per month in child support with no monthly spousal support. Turner-Smith also requested Jackson pay $75,000 for legal fees related to the school issue.
According to documents obtained by Us, the exes' divorce settlement was signed on May 3. Jackson and Turner-Smith agreed in the deal that neither party would receive spousal support and they would share joint legal and physical custody of their daughter.
Jackson, who made a one-time payment of $133,000 in March, agreed to make another payment in the same amount that month. He will also pay Turner-Smith $2,787 per month in child support, however, the amount could change in the future depending on their incomes.
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