Drake Bell has filed for divorce from his estranged wife, Janet Von Schmeling.
The former Nickelodeon star, 39, filed the petition in Seminole County, Florida, on Thursday, Aug. 14, per TMZ.
Von Schmeling, 31, previously filed a divorce petition of her own in Los Angeles in April 2023, and cited the former couple’s date of separation as September 2022.
At the time, Von Schmeling requested both primary legal and physical custody of her and the “Drake and Josh” star’s only child, Wyatt, 4.
She also requested spousal support and asked that the court grant Bell visitation rights.
“The process began back in 2023 when his wife filed citing irreconcilable differences,” Bell’s manager, Juan José Rovirosa, said in a statement to Entertainment Weekly on Saturday. “At this stage, both of them are simply concluding that legal process.”
“Their priority remains the safety and well-being of their son, and they are doing so from a place of love and respect — closing a beautiful chapter of their lives that now evolves into a different form of love and complicity, always centered on their child’s best interests,” Rovirosa added.
The former Nickelodeon child star and Von Schmeling first began dating in 2013 and quietly tied the knot five years later in 2018.
Despite keeping his marriage to Von Schmeling mostly private, Bell broke his silence in July 2021 to reveal that not only was he married but that he had also welcomed a baby son.
“In response to various rumors that are incorrect, I have been married for almost three years, and we are blessed to be the parents of a wonderful son,” the “Amanda Show” alum tweeted at the time. “Thank you very much to all my fans around the world for your good wishes.”
However, Bell’s announcement came just two weeks after he pleaded guilty to two criminal counts of attempted child endangerment and disseminating matter harmful to juveniles.
Bell had sent inappropriate messages to a then-15-year-old girl in 2017, and he was ultimately sentenced to two years of probation and 200 hours of community service.
Von Schmeling then hinted at the pair’s separation in late 2022 shortly after Bell was caught huffing balloons in his car while his son sat in the back seat.
“I’m HEALING and trying to find peace. This will be a process,” the actress wrote that December. “My son is with me and will stay with me, we are in Florida with family and we are safe. We are finding our forever home here.”
Page Six confirmed the couple’s separation one month later, and sources told the outlet that Von Schmeling had “had enough” and moved to Florida with Wyatt.
“They had some incredible beautiful times before. He needs to focus on being healthy, and they’ll be great co-parents in the future,” an insider said at the time.
“It’s a bad moment in time for Drake,” they added. “But he is a great dad when he is healthy and sober.”
Von Schmeling pulled the trigger and filed for divorce in April 2023, shortly after Bell, who was battling suicidal thoughts, was reported missing.
“I found out my wife filed for divorce from TMZ,” Bell tweeted at the time.
The “Superhero Movie” star’s ex has since started a relationship with new boyfriend Jim Perez.
After going Instagram official in October 2023, Von Schmeling announced earlier this year that she and Perez are expecting.
“He chose us… In the big ways, in the quiet moments, and all the in-betweens,” Von Schmeling wrote on Instagram this past Father’s Day. “He became the man Wyatt and I didn’t know we needed…”
“And now, we’re counting down the days until our baby girl gets to be with her daddy too,” she added of her new boyfriend. “Happy (early) Father’s Day to the man who showed up with love and never looked back.”
