Filmmaker-actor Kevin Costner is regarded as one of the finest talents in the entertainment industry. The actor rose to prominence by starring in movies including The Untouchables, Bull Durham, JFK, and more. Costner ventured into direction with 1990’s Dances with Wolves and received Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Director for the same.
Kevin Costner starred as John Dutton on Paramount’s critically acclaimed show Yellowstone and has been appreciated for his performance. Starring as John Dutton marks Costner’s first regular TV series role in his career and viewers were highly impressed by him. But his separation from his wife Christine Baumgartner in 2023 brought his personal life under the spotlight and public scrutiny.
Kevin Costner and Christine Baumgartner’s ‘ugly’ divorce battle
Actor Kevin Costner and handbag designer Christine Baumgartner who got married in 2004 announced their separation in 2023 after 18 years of being married. According to People Magazine’s reports at the time, a source close to the former couple had shared that it was Baumgartner who had filed for a divorce and cited the reason as irreconcilable differences.
The former couple shares three children Cayden, Hayes, and Grace, and the actor in response to the divorce filing had requested joint custody of the children. Costner’s filing had mentioned ‘prenup’ regarding spousal support, legal fees, and properties.
Back in May 2023, a source shared with People that Costner’s work schedule was hard on Christine Baumgartner and the filing of the divorce came as an unpleasant surprise. In June 2023, TMZ reported that Costner stated in his court documents that his estranged wife refused to move out of their house and later it was revealed that she had requested $248K a month in child support in addition to paying 100% of private-school tuition, health-care expenses and extracurricular activities, sports expenses for all three of them.
Their divorce battle took an ugly turn when Costner requested that Christine Baumgartner should pay his legal fees ($99,225) for challenging the pre-nup. The handbag designer was spotted with her kids and financier Josh Connor in July 2023 following which she moved out of their shared house in July and it was reported in August that she is really happy after moving out.
Christine Baumgartner used Kevin Costner’s alleged affair to get back at him?
According to reports by Yahoo Entertainment, an unverified rumor started to swirl in August claiming that the actor had impregnated a woman while filming the critically acclaimed show Yellowstone. The actor quickly shot down the rumors by stating that they were untrue.
But Costner’s divorce from Cindy Silva back in 1994 involved infidelity on his part, which fueled the speculation about the same back in 2023. Costner-Silva’s divorce is regarded as one of the most expensive Hollywood divorces of all time. She according to Page Six walked away with an $80 million settlement and shared custody of their kids Annie, Lily, and Joe.
Christine Baumgartner’s lawyers have stated that the designer did not exactly understand the prenup she signed and ended up giving a $1.5 million settlement in case of divorce. But now the reports from TMZ mentioned that Costner’s net worth increased from $100 million to $400 million during their marriage; Yellowstone’s success is a major contributor.
The outlet noted that even though their prenup agreement mentioned that their earnings would remain separate. However, the designer may argue that the actor didn’t disclose his earnings when they signed a prenup, which makes it invalid. The actor was ordered to pay $129,755 per month in child support; which was less than what she requested.
According to Hello Magazine, their prenup noted,
“If Christine, in any manner, challenges or assists in the challenge of the validity or enforceability of any provision of this Agreement, she shall lose any and all rights to receive any payment, Property or Interest from Kevin pursuant to this Agreement.”
The former couple after months of going back and forth, accusing each other of adultery settled their divorce in September 2023. Their ugly divorce battle including alleged extra-marital affairs will be explored in a documentary; ‘Kevin Costner Divorce War‘ on Fox on Monday at 9/8c. It will be available for streaming the next day on Hulu.
Yellowstone is streaming on Peacock.
