Christina Ricci’s Estranged Husband James Heerdegen Files Restraining Order Amid Divorce Battle

Christina Ricci’s estranged husband James Heerdegen has filed a request for a restraining order against the actress, alleging alcohol and substance abuse has made her a danger to their 6-year-old son, Freddie, reported The Blast on Jan. 22. The day prior, Ricci was granted a restraining order against her ex after alleging she was subjected to “severe physical and emotional abuse” by her ex, which he denied in his own filing.

Heerdegen is requesting that Ricci be forced to stay 100 yards away from him and is asking for sole legal and physical custody of their son. As per the terms of Ricci’s restraining order, Heerdegen is already required to stay 100 yards away from her and has no visitation rights with Freddie or the family’s dog, PEOPLE reported at the time. Ricci, 40, alleged in her own filing that the cinematographer began to abuse her when she was pregnant in 2013, and claimed she thought he “could kill me” after a particularly abusive night.

Heerdegen, meanwhile, accuses The Addams Family actress of drinking until she blacked out, which would leave her with “no memory of the events and/or abusive conduct that she engaged in”. He claimed his ex hit and scratched him while intoxicated and allegedly driving drunk with their son in the car. Ricci’s attorney Samantha Spector responded to the filing, as per The Blast, saying, “This filing is nothing more than a transparently abusive attempt to silence my client. It will not work. Christina will not be intimidated by Mr. Heerdegen and his barrage of misleading claims – and she remains determined to protect her family.”

Ricci went into a detailed list of alleged incidents in her filing, including when Heerdegen “brutally attacked” her on Dec. 16, 2019. When she told him she wanted a divorce months later, Ricci claimed COVID-19 restrictions left her “stuck in the house with a man who had physically and emotionally abused me, and knew that I wanted to end the marriage.” Once lockdown began, Ricci claimed Heerdegen “focused solely on punishing and terrorizing me 24 hours a day,” making her fearful of going to bed each night.

On June 2, Ricci alleged Heerdegen chased her through the house as she attempted to call 911. “He grabbed my wrists and hands, dragged me, and slammed my body into the fire pit we have in the yard,” she wrote. “I suffered cuts, bruising, and soreness of my hip, which still causes me pain today.” On June 25, she claimed her husband followed her around the house, “screaming at me, spitting on me, throwing coffee at me, and throwing a chair at me” in the presence of their son.

If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or thehotline.org.