Sophie Turner and Joe Jonas appeared to have a united family front just days before their latest divorce drama.
The estranged spouses were seen having lunch together with their two daughters in New York City on Monday, ahead of Sophie’s new lawsuit against Joe.
According to photos obtained by TMZ, Sophie and Joe took the girls – Willa, 3, and their 1-year-old whose name has yet to be made public – to Momofuku Noodle Bar in uptown Manhattan. An eyewitness told the outlet that the actress and the pop star appeared amicable without any sign of tension, but it was unclear whether they arrived together or separately.
Celebrity Breakups Of 2023: Britney Spears, Sofia Vergara & More
View GalleryThe reported outing may come as a surprise to fans who have been closely watching the pair’s increasingly contentious split.
In federal court documents filed on Thursday and obtained by Access Hollywood, the “Game of Thrones” star, 27, sued the Jonas Brothers musician, 34, to return their children to her home country of England from New York City.
The papers claim that “wrongful retention” of their two daughters began on or about Sept. 20, one day before the actress filed her petition. The docs note that both girls are dual citizens of the U.K. and the U.S.
According to the petition, Sophie and Joe lived in multiple locations during their relationship and they allegedly agreed to settle permanently in England with their girls. They began searching for their “forever home” overseas in late 2022 and were “very excited” for the move, the docs claim.
Joe filed for divorce in Florida in early September after four years of marriage, a move which Sophie claims in her petition came as a surprise. According to the docs, the pair had an argument in mid-August and Sophie didn’t discover the divorce proceedings were official until the news went public on Sept. 5.
In a statement to Access Hollywood on Thursday, Joe denied the claims made in Sophie’s suit, alleging that she was indeed aware he intended to file for divorce and claiming that the Florida court order prevents either of them from relocating the children at this time.
The actress had been working in England on her upcoming TV series “Joan” in recent weeks while Joe remained in the States with the girls during his tour with brothers Nick Jonas and Kevin Jonas. Sophie’s petition claims she had “hesitation” about the arrangement.
In her lawsuit, Sophie’s legal team accuses Joe of refusing to return their daughters’ passports. The petition claims that the pair met after their split to discuss custody arrangements, when Joe allegedly revealed he had changed his mind about having the kids live in England full-time.
According to Joe’s rep, the singer felt that he and Sophie had reached an undersanding about their co-parenting approach during their post-split meeting. The statement claims that less than 24 hours later Sophie expressed her desire for the children to be taken to England permanently, which Joe’s team claims is a violation of the Florida court order if he complies. The statement added that the kids have spent the majority of their lives in the States and Joe is “okay” with them being raised int both the U.S. and the U.K.
Sophie and Joe have only issued one joint statement on their breakup, saying in respective Instagram posts on Sept. 6 that they had “mutually decided to amicably end” their marriage. They also referenced the “speculative narratives” surrounding the news and insisted the choice was a “united” one.
In his divorce filing, Joe called the marriage “irretrievably broken” and indicated plans for joint custody of the girls.
After a two-year engagement, he and Sophie tied the knot in 2019 in double ceremonies – one in Las Vegas after that year’s Billboard Music Awards and then in a more formal ceremony in France.
Earlier this week, Sophie was spotted out in New York City with Taylor Swift, a former girlfriend of Joe’s, as the pals enjoyed dinner together on two separate occasions.