Having previously starred in the NCIS predecessor JAG, actress Zoe McLellan eventually took on another character within the still-growing franchise, portraying Agent Meredith Brody within the cast of NCIS: New Orleans for two seasons before making a surprising exit. That exit wasn't as shocking, however, as the highly controversial arrest of her ex-husband J.P. Gillain, who was jailed in January 2020 after being accused of first-degree rape and aggravated crime against nature over alleged sexual abuse of then-three-year-old son Sebastian. Having been released and exonerated four months later over a lack of evidence, Gillain is now speaking out against his ex-wife with a warning about her mental state.
For a while now, J.P. Gillain and his legal team have reportedly been trying to track down Zoe McLellan and the former couple's son in Louisiana, despite the currently undetected actress having a warrant out for her arrest in Los Angeles county for outstanding charges of kidnapping, child stealing and child custody deprivation. Now, Gillain is attempting to not only redirect public opinions from his initial arrest and release, but also to draw attention to McLellan being a possible danger. Here's how he put it to RadarOnline:
[I'd like to] restore some sort of truth of what really happened as opposed to what you read online, where basically I'm portrayed as this monster. And I would be a monster if I did do those things to my kid, obviously. Those people are monsters. But I didn't do any of that. It's a complete fabrication. And the concerning aspect of it is that is seems that it was so well-planned.
J.P. Gillain had an abundance of claims to make about his troubled relationship with Zoe McLellan and her alleged treatment of their son. Claiming that she's currently "capable of anything," Gillain shared a particularly disturbing anecdote from 2018 concerning McLellan sending the five-year-old Sebastian in for psychiatric hospitalization. Gillain's lawyer stated that the young boy was thought to be a threat to both himself and others, and was contained within the emergency room for somewhere around a week before then spending another two weeks in a mental institution for suicidal children.
Claiming that he'd never seen Sebastian show any behavior indicating self-harming or suicidal thoughts, J.P. Gillain described that time as "any parent's worst nightmare," and says he still gets emotional thinking about his son being taken away from his normal life and routines and only getting to see his parents for an hour a day. And what's more, Gillain claims that Zoe McLellan chose to keep the child there for the entire two-week stretch, despite doctors' assessment that he could be released, and that it happened during a temporary period when the former NCIS: New Orleans star had full custody of Sebastian.
Claiming that that Zoe McLellan's mother had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and that McLellan herself self-diagnosed herself as being bipolar, J.P. Gillain described his ex-wife as being "paranoid" and "controlling," and said:
Zoe's psychological and mental state is not normal. I lived with her and I know her family background, and I know there was abuse going on with her when she was a small child. She's not totally there.
J.P. Gillain also shared allegations about a prison guard who was reportedly contacted by Zoe McLellan while Gillain was in jail, and said the actress hinted heavily that she wanted the guard to put a hit on her ex. As well, it was claimed that someone McLellan dated in the years after their divorce became suspicious of the mother and her accusations about Sebastian after realizing the boy did not display any recognizable behavior patterns for someone who'd been abused by a parent. The ex-boyfriend then allegedly got in contact with Gillain and is now aiding that legal team when possible.
Until Zoe McLellan herself speaks out, or until authorities find her and bring her to justice, it's unclear where this situation will go next. Here's hoping Sebastian Gillain is as safe as can be, and that everyone involved gets the proper help and healthcare required.
All episodes of NCIS: New Orleans can currently be streamed in full on Paramount+, from the 2014 premiere to the family-building series finale.
