Halle Berry’s ex-husband has been slammed online after giving a somewhat shocking response as to why they divorced.
The Hollywood actress married baseball star David Justice in 1993 after only a few months of dating.
The pair first connected when Berry saw Justice playing baseball in 1992 and handed her phone number to him via a reporter after learning he was a fan.
Their relationship collapsed in 1997, when they split and Berry filed a temporary restraining order against him.
The Oscar winner later revealed the breakup seriously affected her mental health, and she said she almost took her own life.
Now the 59-year-old MLB All-Star has spoken about their messy split from his perspective, comments that have divided fans.
Appearing on Matt Barnes’ All the Smoke podcast on Thursday (August 7), Justice explained what he believes went wrong nearly three decades ago.
Their marriage didn’t last long (Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images)
Justice said they stayed in a “honeymoon state” for about five months, but things shifted when he began thinking about the future.
“We never had any major issues like that, it’s just that I, because I was young, and had only honestly been in one real relationship before her – my knowledge and my understanding and my wisdom around relationships just wasn’t vast,” Justice continued.
“So, I’m looking at my mom – and I’m a Midwest guy. So, in my mind, I’m thinking a wife at that time should cook, clean, you know?”
“And then I’m thinking, ok, if we have kids, you know, is this the woman I want to have kids with and build up a family with?”
“And at that time as a young guy, she don’t cook, don’t clean, don’t really seem like motherly, and then we start having issues.”
Justice also said Berry was the one who pushed for marriage after just five months.
“I said OK, because I couldn’t say no. Who’s going to say no at that time?”
“I don’t know if my heart was really into it, but I didn’t want to make her feel bad and say no, you know, or [if] I was just in the moment,” he added.
Dozens of upset fans criticized Justice for his remarks.
Many felt his comments made it sound like he expected a wife to be a homemaker rather than a partner.
One viewer wrote: “You married Halle Berry in her prime as a movie star and was expecting her to cook and clean? Bye Felicia.”
Another posted: “He wants @halleberry as a housekeeper. Congratulations on escaping queen.”
A third commented: “Come on bruh, shaming your ex decades later sounds very bitter to me. Let it go, dude.”
After their split, Justice married Rebecca Villalobos Justice in 2001. They have three children together.
Berry wed singer-songwriter Eric Benét in 2001 and they divorced in 2005.
She later married Olivier Martinez from 2013 to 2016, and they share two children.
The actress also had a daughter with Gabriel Aubry in 2008.
Berry now appears to be in a relationship with record producer Van Hunt.
Hunt has reportedly already popped the question, though sources say he is waiting on Berry’s answer.
