Joey Lawrence’s Wife Has Filed for Divorce and Wants Full Custody of Their Daughter
Joey Lawrence and his wife, Samantha Cope, share a 1-year-old daughter, Dylan.

Photo Illustration by Erin O’Flynn/The Daily Beast/Getty Images
Actor Joey Lawrence and his third wife, Samantha Cope, are over. TMZ reports that Cope filed the paperwork for divorce Wednesday and is seeking sole physical custody of their 1-year-old daughter, Dylan. According to the outlet, the couple separated in June after two years together. Cope isn’t asking for spousal support, just full custody with the condition that she decides when he sees their daughter. Once the baby turns 3, she can stay with Lawrence 2 nights per week, but no lengthy stays. The actor has two other daughters, Charleston and Liberty, from a previous marriage. In typical show business fashion, the two met on the set of the 2021 Lifetime movie My Husband’s Secret Brother, where his character murdered hers. Lawrence, who rose to fame in the 1990s sitcom Blossom, later spoke to People about their unconventional meeting. “I’d never dated somebody that I’d worked with before. That was just very, very much out of the ordinary for me,” Lawrence said. “I was her killer,” he added. Lawrence was married to Michelle Vella from 2002-2005, and then to Chandie Yawn-Nelson from 2005-2022.
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