In 2002, Halle Berry made history as Hollywood’s first black best actress Oscar winner – but her pioneering career was often overshadowed by her turbulent relationships and bitter legal battles.
The 60-year-old actress is currently locked in a custody battle with ex-husband Olivier Martinez over their 13-year-old son, Maceo, after the latter filed for sole legal custody and a domestic violence restraining order against him.
In court documents viewed by Page Six earlier this month, Martinez, also 60, accused Berry of choking and physically abusing Maceo during an altercation at her Los Angeles home on September 26. Berry and his legal team have strongly denied the allegations as “baseless and deliberately misleading.”
Now, a source who has known Berry for many years tells Page Six that the “Catwoman” star has a side rarely seen by the public – saying her volatile moods have long been a concern to those in her orbit.
“Halle can be the most charming human being you’ve ever met, and then within seconds she’ll fly into a rage,” the source said.
“There is what I can only describe as a dysregulation of her mood that many people in her world have witnessed. And while I personally have never seen her be like that with her children, the polarity of her moods is well known among her friends…I don’t think anyone in her life is immune to mood swings.”
The source pointed to a series of incidents in Berry’s past, including a February 2000 hit-and-run in Hollywood.
Berry ran a red light on Sunset Boulevard and crashed into a car driven by Hetal Raythatha.
The collision left Berry with a deep gash to her forehead and she later claimed she suffered amnesia after hitting her head.
Raythatha suffered a broken wrist and other injuries.
Berry left the scene before police arrived, although investigators found no evidence that she was under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
She was initially charged with a felony, which was later reduced to a misdemeanor for leaving the scene of an accident.
In May 2000, Berry pleaded no contest and was sentenced to three years of probation, a $13,500 fine and 200 hours of community service. Raythatha then sued Berry for negligence. The civil case was settled out of court in May 2001.
The source also recalled how Berry remained furious for years after her co-star Robert Downey Jr. accidentally broke her arm while filming the 2003 thriller “Gothika.” Berry reportedly told friends she felt her apology wasn’t sincere.
“When you put all the pieces together, you see that there could be a temper problem,” the source said, while cautioning: “However, that doesn’t make her guilty of what she’s accused of.”
Indeed, “Martinez has his own problems,” the source added.
A representative and attorney for Berry declined to comment.
Berry has been married three times: to baseball player David Justice, to singer-songwriter Eric Benét, and to Martinez.
She also dated model Gabriel Aubry for several years in the late 2000s and had her first child with him, daughter Nahla, in 2008. But they had a high-profile legal battle and clashed repeatedly over Nahla’s parenting after their falling out in 2010.
The star first met Martinez in 2010 on the set of their film “Dark Tide.” During an explosive confrontation on Thanksgiving 2012, Aubry and Martinez came to blows in front of Berry’s house. Aubry suffered a broken rib, severe facial bruising and possible head trauma, while Martinez suffered hand and neck injuries.
Aubry was arrested on misdemeanor battery charges and the two men subsequently obtained temporary restraining orders against each other before legal matters were settled days later. Neither man has been charged.
Berry and Martinez married at a chateau in Vallery, France, in July 2013, just three months before Maceo was born, but the drama with Aubry continued.
In 2014, Berry was ordered to pay Aubry $16,000 per month in child support, in addition to Nahla’s private school tuition and to pay $115,000 in retroactive child support, as well as $300,000 in Aubry’s attorney fees.
Later that year, Berry sued Aubry, alleging that he dyed and straightened their daughter’s naturally curly hair so she wouldn’t look so black. Aubry has denied the allegations.
Then, in the fall of 2015, Berry and Martinez announced their separation, but their contentious divorce lasted eight years before being finalized in August 2023.
Ultimately, she was ordered to pay Martinez $8,000 per month in child support, plus 4.3 percent of any income she earns above $2 million per year. Berry also covers Maceo’s private school tuition, health insurance, extracurricular activities, and therapy and counseling sessions.
“These custody situations enrage Halle,” the source said. “And she has to support these men. They both relied on her to support them, so it’s understandable that she gets angry, but her rage is uncontrollable sometimes.”
In this latest salvo, Martinez alleged in court documents that Berry choked their son following an argument over virtual reality glasses, saying she called Maceo “such an idiot” for playing a game with the headset. Martinez also alleged several instances of abuse over the past year and a half. The details of these incidents are still unknown.
The star, who is engaged to musician Van Hunt, 56, also dates people who are “devoted to her” – and “she comes to resent it”, the source claimed.
After a longtime friend told us that Berry, who won her Oscar for playing the grieving widow of an executed death row inmate in “Monster’s Ball,” could come across as “irrational,” another source who knows the star said she witnessed “extreme kindness, then extreme bile and rage in a few breathtaking minutes.”
But in the midst of her latest legal fight, Berry received a powerful public show of support from her daughter.
Nahla, now 18, described her mother as a “loving and devoted mother” who “can be strict when necessary,” according to a declaration filed in Los Angeles Superior Court and obtained by Page Six.
“I never saw my mother hit, slap, choke, grab or physically abuse Maceo in any way,” she said, expressing her “shock” at the allegations and her love for her brother.
“I never saw my mother place her hands around Maceo’s neck, strangle him, restrict his breathing, or engage in any behavior remotely resembling the allegations that were made against her.”
Nahla acknowledged that Berry expects her children to follow the rules and be respectful, but said her mother is also “warm, supportive and deeply involved in our lives.”
“I never observed anything abusive in his parenting,” she added.
Martinez currently has temporary custody of Maceo and this week, a Los Angeles judge ruled that the teen can testify in court proceedings.
Berry still has decisive rights over decisions regarding Maceo and has physical custody overnight.
However, in a formal response filed Wednesday, Berry alleged that Martinez was responsible for their son’s recent behavioral problems at school.
She is seeking sole legal custody and wants the court to restore her authority over major decisions affecting Maceo’s well-being. If the judge refuses, she asks for final decision-making authority on matters of education, medical care and mental health if the parents cannot reach an agreement after 72 hours of attempts.
The filing includes statements from Hunt, 56, alongside Nahla and school staff. The next hearing in Maceo’s case is scheduled for next Monday.
The source who has known Berry for years said: “I hope this (the current legal situation) doesn’t get too complicated for the sake of everyone involved. »
Despite the turmoil, Berry continues to work on new projects, including “The President Is Missing,” an adaptation of the Bill Clinton and James Patterson novel at Apple Original Films, and Respin, her wellness platform focused on women’s health and menopause.
In August, she celebrated her 60th birthday by posing in a red and black lace-trimmed dress, seemingly wearing nothing underneath, alongside chocolate-covered strawberries and what appeared to be a mimosa.
The star seems ready to make a new…
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