Dennis Hopper Battles for Daughter, Calls Wife 'Malevolent'

Feb. 11, 2010— -- While Dennis Hopper battles cancer, he's also battling his wife, Victoria Duffy-Hopper, for custody of their six-year-old daughter, Galen.

Hopper, 73, currently undergoing chemotherapy for advanced prostate cancer, filed declarations along with his children, doctors and assistant in Los Angeles Superior Court today to support his divorce petition from Duffy-Hopper, 42, his wife of 14 years.

Court papers portray Duffy-Hopper as a villian, Reuters reports. The papers describe her as "extremely volatile," "insane and out of her mind" and "inhuman."

In the papers, Hopper, the star of "Easy Rider" and other films, claims his wife has kept Galen from him for long periods of time. He said he spent Christmas "in utter distress" after Duffy-Hopper took Galen to Boston, a trip he learned about from her attorney.

"This malevolent act ... has caused me to miss what may very well be my last Christmas with my daughter Galen," Hopper said in his filing.

Also contained in the court papers are allegations from Hopper's family that Duffy-Hopper stole pieces from her husband's priceless art collection and changed the locks on his house. The papers say cancer has reduced Hopper's weight to 120 pounds. They say he vomits after taking his medication.

In court today, a judge ruled Duffy-Hopper must stay at least 10 feet away from Hopper; his son, Henry; his daughter, Marin; and his assistant, Emily Davis, according to TMZ.com. The judge also ruled that Duffy-Hopper may not enter the main Hopper residence in Venice, Calif. or any other portion of the property other than the unit in which she is currently living.

However, Duffy-Hopper maintains primary custody of Galen. The judge granted Hopper the right to visit his daughter every day for two hours.

Hopper's claims come in the wake of Duffy-Hopper's response to his divorce filing, in which she said the ailing actor was being coerced to leave her by his adult children, who want a larger piece of his estate.

Victoria Duffy-Hopper: Dennis Can't Make Decisions

In a declaration filed in Los Angeles Superior Court in January and obtained by ABC News, Victoria Duffy-Hopper, 41, said her husband, who was diagnosed with prostate cancer 10 years ago, had been rendered mentally incapable of making decisions for himself or in the best interests of Galen.

In the filing she asserted that Hopper, allegedly addled by illness and drug use, threatened her verbally, kept loaded guns around the house, and exposed their young daughter both to his frequent marijuana use and to films that contain inappropriate sexual content.

Duffy-Hopper, the actor's fifth wife, said in her declaration that Hopper has been "pressured" by his "advisors and adult children from other relationships to file for dissolution of our marriage" despite being "incapable of handling his legal and financial affairs."

Under the prenuptial agreement the couple signed before their 1996 wedding, Duffy-Hopper is entitled to 25 percent of Hopper's estate so long as they were "married and living together," according to the filing. Duffy-Hopper is now also seeking child support and continued use of Hopper's Venice, Calif., home designed by architect Frank Gehry, as well as counseling for their daughter Galen and attorneys' fees.

Duffy-Hopper also claimed in court papers that her husband told her he "does not want to divorce" but "that other people are insisting he take care of them upon his death." Mentioned specifically is Hopper's daughter Marin, who at 47, is six years older than Duffy-Hopper.

In the declaration, Duffy-Hopper requested a restraining order be issued barring Marin from the Ventura compound. She also requested a restraining order against Hopper that would ensure that any meetings between the actor and their six-year-old daughter would be monitored.

She accused Hopper of being verbally abusive, claiming that in 2008 he called her "a human garbage can." In 2009, she alleges in the papers, he threatened her: "Something bad is going to happen to you and you won't see it coming."

The Kansas-born Hopper has had a colorful career in Hollywood. He shot to fame with "Easy Rider." Before that, he acted alongside James Dean in "Rebel Without a Cause" and "Giant." In 1979, Hopper appeared in "Apocalypse Now" and in 1994, "Speed." His more recent work includes the role of record producer Ben Cendars in the cable TV series "Crash."

ABC News' Sheila Marikar contributed to this report.