Keshia Knight Pulliam Speaks Out on Divorce and Paternity Test Drama – Claims Ex Ed Hartwell Is the One Who Cheated
Just one day after news broke her husband Ed Hartwell filed for divorce and demanded she undergo a paternity test, Keshia Knight Pulliam is speaking out.
In a sit-down interview that aired Wednesday on Entertainment Tonight, the Cosby Show alum addressed the bombshell split – which came just six months after the couple wed and one week after the actress announced she is expecting.
Of the paternity test Hartwell is requesting, Pulliam, 37, maintained she “never cheated on him during my marriage” – but instead alleged Hartwell, 38, was the one who was unfaithful.
“That’s not who I am,” she added. “That’s not an issue. There’s no problem. I’ve never been unfaithful to my husband. This is his daughter.” (Meanwhile, a source close to Hartwell told PEOPLE Tuesday the former NFL star “doesn’t have any evidence of her cheating” but wants a paternity test because he is concerned about the timing of the pregnancy, which the source said came “during a very dark spot in their relationship.”)
Pulliam said she almost left Hartwell over his alleged infidelity.
“When earlier in my marriage I was faced with this, I was ready to leave,” she said. “I had divorce papers ready. I presented them to him. He begged … He said: ‘Please, I want my family,’ he said all the right things. Once I was pregnant I decided to give him another chance.”
Pulliam said she was blindsided by the split.
“He left like it was any other day, said goodbye, I was still asleep in bed,” she said. “He texted me saying: ‘Hey, can I talk to you for a moment,’ … He was like: ‘You know, this isn’t working.’ All I heard was: ‘I filed for divorce this morning and I’m coming to get my stuff.’ “
The star, who plans to sell the couple’s house before giving birth to her daughter, said she’s most concerned with protecting the baby.
“It’s one thing when you choose to be in the spotlight. It’s another thing when you have a baby. And it’s not about me,” she said. “The biggest thing and my priority is she doesn’t deserve it.”
When asked whether she still loves her ex, Pulliam said she loves “who he pretended to be.”
“I have no desire to continue to be married to him,” she said. “I’m doing this one interview, and I’m done. I’m not going to continue to revisit, regurgitate, but I’m not going to continue to allow people to tell blatant lies about me.”
That being said, the actress said she’s still “grateful.”
“Despite all of this … I am grateful for my blessing, and that’s my little girl,” she said.
The interview will continue Thursday on Entertainment Tonight.
“One day, he will have to answer to her and explain to her,” Pulliam says in a sneak peek.
