In Rumer Willis and Derek Thomas’ custody battle over their 3-year-old daughter, Louetta, Demi Moore told the court Thomas has shown “very odd” and “unstable” behavior, while Thomas denies the allegations and says there has never been any neglect or abuse in h
When Rumer Willis’ custody case with her ex Derek Thomas reached its latest courtroom turn. it wasn’t just Rumer who put her account on paper. Her mother. Demi Moore. submitted a five-page declaration describing Thomas as “unstable” and alleging his conduct during key moments—ranging from pregnancy to the birth—created “unnecessary stress and fear.”.
The filing lands in the middle of a custody dispute over Willis and Thomas’ 3-year-old daughter, Louetta. In July, Thomas—30—filed a petition in Los Angeles to establish a parental relationship with Willis, 37, and asked for joint legal and physical custody, plus an order for visitation.
Willis, in filings that followed, accused Thomas of emotional abuse and coercive control. In a Jan. 21 filing. Willis alleged Thomas “engaged in a persistent pattern of emotional abuse” during their two-year relationship. “often in front of the minor child or while they were trapped in the car with him.” She said Thomas’ “ongoing coercive control through prolonged circular verbal attacks that he is unable or unwilling to stop” left Louetta “visibly traumatized. ” with effects she described as “crying a lot. nervousness. and an inability to nap or sleep well.”.
Documents also show the pair went to mediation in August and reached a temporary custodial agreement. Under that arrangement, Thomas was allowed time with Louetta six to seven hours a day in either L.A. or Sun Valley, where Willis and Louetta were living. Willis agreed to facilitate communication and visits between Thomas and their daughter.
Willis later challenged how Thomas used that time. In her January response. she said Thomas “has not availed himself of the essentially unlimited custodial time with his daughter in Sun Valley.” She alleged that instead he “made all visits about himself and his needs along with constant combative aggression” aimed at “create and then stay in a problem.”.
Willis also alleged Thomas “causes high stress and chaos” around custody plans and exchanges when she is in L.A.—where her visits are typically to see her father. Bruce Willis. who has frontotemporal dementia. She wrote that Thomas “(Thomas) has made it clear that this is of no importance to him. ” and added that he is “often foregoing his time with Louetta over agreeing to very basic requests like keeping Louetta on her nap routine or allowing the nanny to come on the visits.”.
Willis asked the court to make the temporary agreement permanent with modifications limiting Thomas’ time to “three to four days per week. ” plus restrictions on driving the child with monitoring by the nanny at no cost to him. She also requested “no girlfriend present due to his known history of fighting in relationships and in front of the child.”.
She further asked for a “730 child custody evaluation,” describing it as a mental health assessment. Willis alleged Thomas showed a “lack of ability to responsibly care for a young child by putting her needs before his own.” Her filing also alleged he has a “history of unstable and abusive behavior when in relationships. ” citing “his horrible abusive and hostile behavior” during their time together.
Willis said she is sober from drugs and alcohol. and she alleged the singer—Thomas—was “a chronic daily drug user.” She said she does not have knowledge of his habits after their 2024 split. but argued that his “behavior and personality is one that is commonly seen by drug users” and listed traits she associated with that behavior: “emotionally abusive. unreasonable. constant arguing. illogical resentments. hostility. immaturity. impulsiveness. lack of any ambition. unemployable. and an inability to even think of other’s needs before their own.”.
Thomas denied those claims in a separate filing, calling the allegations “false.” He also denied domestic violence allegations. In documents following Willis’ January response. Thomas said. “I have committed no acts of domestic violence in any form. including any active ‘coercive control.’” He characterized the relationship as unhealthy. but said it “was not at all characterized by any violence. physical or emotional attacks or intimidation on my part.”.
Thomas asserted he and Willis have “an excellent. loving and very supportive relationship with our daughter. ” and he called himself “a very consistently involved father.” He added: “There has never been any legitimate question raised concerning my parenting or ability to meet Louetta’s every need. ” and said Louetta “has never suffered for any want in my care. ” adding she “has never been injured in any way” and “has not suffered trauma or emotional or physical abuse of any kind nor been neglected at any time she’s been in my care.” He also said Willis “fails to detail. even a single credible instance of any mistreatment or neglect by me.”.
Moore’s declaration brings the dispute to a more personal level—through the moments she says she witnessed.
Moore wrote that Thomas showed “very odd” behavior since she first met him in June 2022. She said Willis was “under a constant state of stress” during her pregnancy because of the relationship. and she wrote that Thomas “always put himself and his needs first.” In her account. Moore said Thomas “sucks the joy out of all encounters with him. ” and she alleged he wanted “to put Rumer at odds with our family. and creates unnecessary stress and fear for Rumer to this day.”.
She described Thomas’ conduct during the home birth as part of the stress she said she saw building. When Willis had her home birth. Moore claimed Thomas “essentially ruined what should have been one of the happiest moments of her life” by “acting angry and pouting and making it all about him” after he “got into the birthing tub in an aggressive and sudden manner” and Willis asked him to get out.
Moore also alleged that when Louetta was a newborn. Thomas argued with Willis about wanting to smoke marijuana around the baby. She wrote that Rumer and others “became concerned that he was unstable. ” and she said Rumer told her Derek was creating fights constantly and causing “her extreme stress.” Moore further wrote that Rumer told her Thomas “would not let her sleep at night as he wanted to continue arguing into the night.”.
Taken together. the filings show two competing portraits of the same custody dispute: Willis and her family describe a pattern of instability and emotional harm that they say affects Louetta’s wellbeing. while Thomas disputes the accusations and insists the court has no credible basis to question his parenting. The temporary custody arrangement reached in August remains a reference point. but the battle now centers on whether the court will accept Willis’ requested limits. her request for a “730 child custody evaluation. ” and her broader claims about the circumstances surrounding Louetta’s care.
For now, the case reflects how custody fights can expand beyond schedules—into testimony about routines, stress, and the day-to-day conditions children experience when parents disagree.
Rumer Willis Derek Thomas Demi Moore Louetta custody Los Angeles court 730 child custody evaluation parental relationship joint custody Sun Valley Bruce Willis dementia