Keke Palmer is opening up about co-parenting her son, Leodis, with her ex, Darius Jackson.
In an interview with Gayle King on CBS Mornings on Tuesday, November 19, Palmer, 31, reflected on their relationship, she admitted she didn’t expect things to turn out as positively as they have.
“I gotta be honest, I would’ve never thought that I would be where I am now, and so I’m very grateful that this has now been the outcome and we’ve been able to coexist in this way and show up for our son, and just be in a different place. It’s a real blessing.”
When asked how she and Jackson are able to co-parent successfully, Palmer credited setting clear boundaries.
“Boundaries. Boundaries – I don’t think I had enough of ’em,” she revealed. “I think boundaries, and I talk about that a lot in the book. People cannot respect boundaries you don’t have and sometimes it’s hard to make boundaries with people you love.”
Keke also explained that her son played a big role in her personal growth.
She added, “And when I had my son, it became clear that I needed to create boundaries and I needed to have hard lines with the people in my life. Not just the personal but in my work. Everything became clear because this child needs me.”
Becoming a mother also shifted Palmer’s priorities. “Anything that’s taking from me that I could have been okay with before, I’m not anymore because I need to be 100% for this child. And I think that changed everything.”
For context, Palmer and Jackson welcomed their son on February 25, 2023. However, their relationship became strained, leading to Palmer obtaining a temporary restraining order against Jackson in November 2023, citing allegations of domestic and emotional abuse.
In response, Jackson filed his own legal claim in December 2023, accusing Palmer of being the “primary aggressor” during their time together.