Blake Jenner, 28, is coming forward about allegations made by his ex-wife Melissa Benoist, 32. “I take full responsibility and accountability for the hurt that I inflicted during my relationship with my past partner—emotionally, mentally and yes, physically,” the Glee alum posted in a lengthy statement posted to his Instagram account on Thursday, October 8, referencing Melissa who he “fell in love with” at just 20 years old. “As great as the love that was shared between us, the shared brokenness that stemmed from our childhoods proved to be greater,” he explained.
The actor then accused Melissa of abusing him, as well. “It is important to understand that there was mental, emotional and physical abuse inflicted from both ends,” he alleged, detailing an incident in which he “threw” a phone at the Supergirl star that left him in “a state of shock. He went on to explain that they sought professional help. “As a result, my former partner and I began to see a therapist together, but despite numerous attempts to work our issues out, we would find ourselves stuck in this toxic cycle that our relationship became,” he added.
“The mental and emotional abuse began at the start of our relationship,” he wrote, going on to detail how Melissa allegedly abused him. “I was scratched. I was slapped…I was punched in the face, which caused a trip to the hospital to treat my broken nose. I, too, have had to conceal and make up lies about many visible injuries I had incurred throughout the relationship,” he claimed, explaining that his behavior towards Melissa came from a “false sense of masculinity that I felt the need to uphold.”
Melissa and Blake — who met on Glee — were married from 2015 – 2017. Last year, she came forward as a victim of abuse. “He was a magnanimous person, who didn’t really give you a choice not to be drawn to him…He could be charming, funny, manipulative, devious…” she explained, not naming him. “He loved me. I thought I loved him, and I was going to make it work…None of that registered as abuse, because I was worried about how he felt at that point, to even comprehend how it even affected me,” she also said in the lengthy Nov. 2019 video.
“In retrospect, I see that each red flag followed a very clear path on things becoming violent…the stark truth is I learned what it felt like to be pinned down and slapped repeatedly, punched so hard the wind was knocked out of me, dragged by my hair across pavement, head butted, pinched until my skin broke, shoved into a wall so hard the drywall broke, choked,” she detailed. “I learned to lock myself in rooms but quickly stopped because the door was inevitably broken down. I learned to not value any of my property — replaceable and irreplaceable. I learned not to value myself.” Melissa since tied the knot with her Supergirl co-star Chris Wood, 31, back in Sept. 2019.
If you or someone you love is suffering for domestic abuse, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE or go to the website for more information. HollywoodLife has reached out to representatives for Blake and Melissa for comment on this story.