You mentioned your tendency was up in June, but you left in March. Yes, it’s just rentals. You know how things go. But like I said, he’s going through a divorce. I’m sure he’s got enough problems.
Yeah. Yeah. You’ve never hooked up with her?
Absolutely not.
It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a divorce as messy as the one involving Kevin Costner and Christine Baumgartner. Kevin is making it look like his ex-wife is a gold-digging cheater who wants to leave him broke and jobless, while Christine portrays Kevin as a stingy, bitter ex who only wants to see her suffer. So, who’s right in this case, and what exactly is going on with all this back and forth about their divorce?
It’s a terrible situation, but this is where things stand. For a bit of background, Kevin and Christine got married in September 2004, marking Kevin’s second marriage following his divorce from Cindy Silva in 1994. When Kevin and Christine started dating, Kevin was hesitant to have kids, but Christine was upfront from day one about wanting to start a family. Kevin even recalled a conversation from back in 2020: “If you’re going to be with me, you need to know that kids are at the end of the road for me with you if that’s going to happen.”
Eventually, Kevin Costner and Christine Baumgartner had three children together: sons Cayden Wyatt and Hayes Logan, and a daughter, Grace Avery. Kevin also has four other children from previous relationships: Annie, Lily, Joe, and Liam. Unfortunately, after 18 years of marriage, Christine felt that their relationship was no longer working for her, and she filed for divorce. Fans learned about their split in early May 2023, although the couple had actually separated a bit earlier. Court filings revealed that Christine listed their date of separation as April 11th, citing irreconcilable differences as the reason for their breakup. Both Christine and Kevin requested joint custody of their three children in their respective filings.
Christine struggled with Kevin’s demanding work schedule, as she wanted more family time at their Santa Barbara home. Kevin was often away due to filming, and his frequent absences were very hard for her. With no signs of change and the likelihood of it getting worse, this strain led Christine to decide to file for divorce.
“It feels so bad,” Kevin said. “We were talking about someone I love on the other side. I just can’t.”
The drama began in June when Kevin claimed Christine had refused to leave the house. He even went so far as to file for her forceful eviction. According to their prenuptial agreement, Christine had 30 days to vacate the house, which was owned by Kevin, after filing for divorce. Since she filed on May 1st, she was supposed to be out by the end of the month. Kevin stated that he had given Christine one million dollars on top of what the prenup required, going above and beyond its terms. The documents also mentioned that Kevin was willing to provide a ten thousand dollar advance for Christine’s moving costs and thirty thousand dollars per month for a rental home.
After countless back-and-forths with Kevin regarding why she should stay in the house, a judge finally ruled that Christine had to leave. But that was just the tip of the iceberg because Christine also demanded $248,000 per month for all three kids. She argued it was necessary to maintain their lifestyle and insisted that Kevin foot the bill for 100% of private school fees, extracurriculars, and healthcare. That’s a hefty sum, no doubt.
Kevin wasn’t having it though. He called Christine’s $248,000 request inflated and baseless. Instead, he offered $38,000 monthly for child support, plus covering all school expenses, books, fees, uniforms, trips, sports camps, and agreed-upon activities. Later, he bumped up the offer to $51,940, but Christine shot it down as completely inadequate.
So, here’s the deal: The divorce judge ended up bumping up Kevin’s temporary monthly payments to a whopping $129,755 for child support, but later brought it down to $63,000 monthly. But let me tell you, that’s nowhere near enough, especially when Christine is rumored to be dropping around $80,000 every month on beauty treatments alone. She’s also asking Kevin to cover a jaw-dropping $350,000 in lawyer fees and $150,000 in forensic costs, and get this – she didn’t even wait for Kevin to sign off on it!
Then things got even messier when Kevin decided to tighten the reins on Christine’s credit card spending after she went ahead and racked up over $105,000 on divorce-related expenses without giving him a heads-up.
But wait, there’s more drama! Kevin went ahead and filed a motion to stop Christine from hauling off certain items from their crib in Santa Barbara. He’s cool with her taking her personal stuff like clothes and jewelry, but he’s putting his foot down on anything else. Plus, he’s calling her out on using company credit cards without permission and buying a car right before they called it quits – seems like she was planning her exit strategy all along, huh?
And just to add some extra spice to the mix, guess who Christine was spotted vacationing with in Hawaii? None other than Josh Connor, who, by the way, happens to be Kevin’s buddy. Yeah, this whole situation? It’s like a soap opera playing out in real life.
In early August, Kevin filed yet another motion, this time seeking to compel Christine to provide explicit answers to a series of questions about their prenuptial agreement. It seemed Christine had been dodging these queries, especially the crucial one about whether she truly understood the agreement before signing it. Interestingly, Christine later admitted feeling pressured into signing due to the circumstances surrounding the agreement’s drafting and confessed she didn’t fully grasp its implications. She also accused Kevin of withholding documents outlining his future income to avoid paying more. Christine’s resistance to the prenup seemed like a gamble without a solid plan, leaving her vulnerable unless Kevin decides to play nice. If she ends up losing the battle over the prenup, she could find herself financially strapped, relying solely on child support.
Furthermore, Christine doesn’t appear to possess any marketable skills and claims to have no income. It’s doubtful she has any retirement savings or plans, leaving her in a precarious financial situation. Allegedly, her family relied on Kevin’s support, which suggests they might also be struggling if they aren’t financially secure or if their home isn’t fully paid off and they’re retired.
Just when things seemed chaotic enough, rumors of infidelity added another layer of complexity. There was talk that Kevin had fathered a child with a crew member from Yellowstone’s behind-the-scenes team. However, in the divorce court documents, Kevin adamantly denied any wrongdoing, though he admitted uncertainty about Christine’s actions. As for Christine, she found herself linked to Daniel Starr, a real estate developer who had rented one of Kevin Costner’s guest houses in Santa Barbara, California. Daniel firmly denied any romantic involvement with Christine, stating they were nothing more than friendly neighbors.
When asked about confronting Daniel, Kevin was resolute in his denial.
“No, absolutely not.”
“You never did?”
“Absolutely not. No.”
The saga continued during the hearing on August 31st, when Christine’s lawyer made a striking assertion: that luxury runs deep in Christine and her kids’ DNA. They outlined their extensive involvement in various sports and the multiple homes the family possesses. Apparently, Christine was visibly moved, even shedding tears as she sifted through photos showcasing their opulent lifestyle.
The idea of luxury being encoded in their DNA struck me as rather unusual. But let’s not overlook Kevin’s own past missteps, which stretch back decades. Considering all this information is out in the open, Christine must have been fully aware of what she was getting into when she said “I do” and signed that prenup. Things seem to have quieted down a bit for now, but who knows what Christine might have up her sleeve.
I still find myself pondering a few questions. Is Kevin simply bitter about Christine leaving and trying to throw obstacles in her path, or did Christine push too hard with her financial demands? Do you think her decision to marry Kevin was solely driven by money and the lifestyle he could provide? Share your take on this messy divorce in the comments below.
