Joey Lawrence and Samantha Cope Split After 2 Years of Marriage

A source close to the pair confirmed the separation to PEOPLE

Joey Lawrence and Samantha Cope are separating after two years of marriage, a source close to the couple confirms to PEOPLE.

TMZ was the first to report the news, indicating that Cope submitted the divorce filing two months after their date of separation in June 2024. She has reportedly requested to block the court's ability to award either side spousal support. Additionally, she is seeking full physical custody of their daughter while permitting Lawrence visitation at her discretion.

PEOPLE has reached out to reps for Lawrence and Cope.

Related: Joey Lawrence, Samantha Cope Talk Working with 'Beacon of Light' Anne Heche on One of Her Last Films

Speculation about the former couple's separation was first sparked when Lawrence was spotted without a wedding ring in PEOPLE's exclusive photos of his family vacation to Jamaica in August. Cope was also noticeably absent from the pictures.

Lawrence, 48, and his brothers Matthew, 44, and Andrew, 36, described the trip as a "vacation of a lifetime." The three siblings were joined by their mother, Donna, the Melissa & Joey alum's daughters, Charleston, 18, and Liberty, 14, as well as Andrew’s girlfriend, Brittany McGowan, on the Caribbean getaway.

“Nothing matters more in this life than the beautiful memories you share with loved ones,” the brothers told PEOPLE at the time. "It was a vacation of a lifetime and we can’t wait to go back!”

Related: Joey Lawrence Says It Was 'So Crazy' to Marry His On-Screen Lover–Turned–Murder Victim Samantha Cope (Exclusive)

On May 1, 2022, Lawrence and Cope said "I do" in front of their friends and family at the Temecula Creek Inn in Temecula, California.

At the time, Lawrence told PEOPLE that their union felt "so right" and added, "Life can be challenging at times, but when God gives you the right person, it's worth it."

Shortly after their nuptials, the duo announced that they were expecting in September and welcomed their first baby — Lawrence's third daughter — in January 2023.

The two met in while filming Lifetime's My Husband's Secret Brother in 2021.

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"We did this big thriller that my brother Andrew directed for Lifetime, and I met her on the set that movie," Lawrence told PEOPLE in December 2023. "Which is so crazy to me. I'd never dated somebody that I'd worked with before. That was just very, very much out of the ordinary for me."

"I was her killer," he said with a laugh. "Well, I was her lover — and also her killer."

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Read the original article on People.