Joey Lawrence and actress Samantha Cope are getting divorced.
The Salt Lake City-born actress, 37, filed for divorce on Wednesday after more than two years of marriage to the Abington, Pennsylvania native, 48, US Weekly reported after reviewing legal docs.
Cope has asked for full custody of their daughter Dylan, 19 months, the outlet reported, noting that she would allow her daughter to spend two nights a week at her father’s house when she turns three-years-old in January of 2026.
Cope said that ‘irreconcilable differences’ was the cause of their split, TMZ reported after reviewing court docs, adding that she and the Blossom alum separated this past June.
Cope in court docs said that neither she or the Melissa & Joey actor should be awarded spousal support, according to the outlet.
Joey Lawrence and actress Samantha Cope are getting divorced, as the Salt Lake City-born actress, 37, filed for divorce on Wednesday after more than two years of marriage to the Abington, Pennsylvania native, 48. Pictured in June of 2023
Cope has asked for full custody of their daughter Dylan, 19 months
Cope told the court that she does not want to allow Lawrence to have extended visits with the child, the outlet reported, until Dylan is ‘older and can consent to such visits.’
Cope in her filing asked that she have approval over any non-relatives that her daughter is around while with Lawrence, according to the outlet.
Lawrence was previously wed to Chandie Yawn-Nelson from 2005 thru their 2020 divorce filing, with their split finalized in 2021; and Michelle Vella from 2002 until 2005.
Lawrence is also father to daughters Charleston, 18, and Liberty, 14, with Yawn-Nelson.
Lawrence and Cope first met in 2020 working on the Lifetime film My Husband’s Secret Brother.
Lawrence and Cope in August of 2021 revealed their engagement to Us Weekly, as he told the publication, ‘It’s a lot of great stuff, a lot of really great stuff. She’s the best person ever.
‘So we met there and out of nowhere, you know, it was a crazy year and a half for everybody, obviously the whole world,’ he said, referring to the coronavirus pandemic. ‘Then when you least expect [it,] amazing things happen and meeting her has just been really the greatest thing ever.
He added: ‘When you least expect it, you know, you literally meet the perfect person for you, and all those intangibles come into play … and then you meet [the] right person.’
The couple was pictured embracing in 2022, the year they exchanged vows
Lawrence and Cope first met in 2020 working on the Lifetime film My Husband’s Secret Brother
The veteran actor was snapped on The Celebrity Dating Game in 2021
Lawrence and Cope wed in May of 2022 at the Temecula Creek Inn in Temecula, California. Among those in attendance included the actor’s brothers, Matthew Lawrence, 44, and Andrew Lawrence, 36.
At the time, Cope told People that her courtship with Lawrence was a rapid one: ‘From day one, it was such a safe place to be myself … two weeks in, I was like, “I will be with you forever.”‘
Cope added, ‘When you meet the right person, if you’re lucky enough, it cuts to the chase so quick. I have somebody who is like-minded and has the same love languag
e, and we communicate the same way. That’s super important. And I am so thankful.’
Cope alluded to potential issues in the relationship with a June 11 post she posted to Instagram that read, ‘Not everything you lose is a loss,’ attached to a slideshow that included no pics of Lawrence.
Lawrence has worked in Hollywood for decades, beginning as a child star appearing on shows such as Gimme a Break! from 1983-1987; Blossom from 1990-1995; Brotherly Love from 1995-1997; and Melissa & Joey from 2010-2015.
Cope’s credits include TV shows such as HBO’s Insecure, NCIS: Los Angeles and Rizzoli & Isles; and in films such as 2020’s Revenge for Daddy, 2021’s An Organized Killer and 2022’s Love at the Christmas Contest.
