Joey Lawrence Allegedly Had an Affair Ahead of Split from Wife Samantha Cope: 'He Love-Bombed Her' (Exclusive Source)

Infidelity was a factor in Joey Lawrence and Samantha Cope’s decision to end their marriage, according to an exclusive source.

A source close to the former couple, whose divorce news was announced on Aug. 21, tells PEOPLE exclusively that the couple went their separate ways after Lawrence, 48, began dating Melina Alves, a writer and actress in his upcoming film, For Christmas.

“Joey met Melina Alves on the set of their movie, where she was the producer,” claims the source. “Then he love bombed her just like he love bombed Samantha. He continued to date Melina even after Samantha found out and confronted him.”

When Cope, 37, “wanted to go to counseling,” the source claims, Lawrence “fooled their counselor” and “prepared for dates with Melina while Sam looked on, rolling his eyes.”

Samantha Cope (left) and Joey Lawrence. Joey Lawrence Instagram Joey Lawrence and Samantha Cope split after 2 years of marriage

On Aug. 22, TMZ reportedly obtained divorce filings from Alves’ estranged husband, Edward Rider, alleging that he discovered Alves was having an affair with Lawrence in late March. Rider’s divorce paperwork was filed in July, just weeks before Cope filed for divorce, TMZ reports.

(L-R) Ricardo Chavez, Allison Elliott, Joey Lawrence and Melina Alves shoot ‘Socked in for Christmas’.

Melina Alves/ Instagram

Rider stated in a court filing that Alves and Lawrence had an affair in California – where they were presumably filming the movie Tucked in for Christmas — and continued to engage in infidelity “at various other times and places,” according to TMZ.

PEOPLE reached out to representatives for Lawrence, Cope, Alves and Rider for comment, but they did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

Joey Lawrence and Samantha Cope with their daughter Dylan Lawrence.

Joey Lawrence/Instagram

On Wednesday, Aug. 20, PEOPLE confirmed that Lawrence and Cope — who met on the set of the Lifetime My husband’s secret brother in 2021 before tying the knot in May 2022 — they split after two years of marriage.

According to the divorce filing obtained by PEOPLE, Cope cited irreconcilable differences as the reason for their separation and filed the papers on Aug. 13 — two months after the separation date, which was listed as June 7, 2024. She asked to block the court’s ability to awards the parties spousal support and seeks full physical custody of their daughter Dylan, 19 months, while allowing discretionary visitation with Lawrence.

According to the filing, Cope requested that Lawrence “not take [Dylan] for long, extended periods of time until she is old enough to specifically request visitation time” and that Dylan “not be in the presence of any non-family members while with Joe, unless agreed to by Samantha.”

Joey Lawrence and Samantha Cope.

Samantha Cope/Instagram

Joey Lawrence Says His Marriage To Samantha Cope Was ‘Very Unexpected’ 8 Months Ahead Of Their Divorce (Exclusive)

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

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

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

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Eight months before Cope filed for divorce from Lawrence, he spoke to PEOPLE in December 2023 about how they met and why he initially didn’t expect their relationship to turn into marriage.

“I’ve never dated someone I’ve worked with before. That was very, very unusual for me,” he told PEOPLE at the time. “I’ve never really gotten into a serious relationship with someone I’ve really worked with, ever.”

“It was very unexpected,” he continued. “These wild twists and turns that you get at our age. You just kind of go, ‘Okay, well, I guess it is what it is.’ You learn to accept the unusual way some things just happen, and you’re grateful for that—you’re grateful for that, even though it’s not what you expected.”

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Source: HIS Education