Kevin Costner, Christine Baumgartner. Lionel Hahn/Getty Images
Kevin Costner has broken his silence about his ongoing divorce from estranged wife Christine Baumgartner.
Costner, 68, and Baumgartner, 49, appeared in court on Friday, September 1, for a hearing as part of their ongoing legal battle over their separation. During the proceedings, Costner joked about his annual earnings after Baumgarnter’s attorneys accused him of making more than he previously claimed. “Oh good, we’ll have to have a treasure hunt to find it,” Costner quipped in response, according to Access Hollywood.
Following the hearing, Costner opened up to the outlet about his witty courtroom remark — and his ongoing messy split from Baumgartner.
“Were you laughing? I wasn’t,” he said. “This is a horrible place to be, but this is where we’re at.”
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Kevin Costner’s divorce from estranged wife Christine Baumgartner got off to a messy start. The duo tied the knot in September 2004. Nearly 19 years later, Us Weekly confirmed in May 2023 that Baumgartner had filed for divorce from the Oscar winner, citing irreconcilable differences as the reason for their split. “It is with great […]
The Yellowstone star also hinted at the complicated emotions regarding the pair’s split, saying, “It feels so bad and we’re talking about somebody I love on the other side, I just can’t.”
When asked if he still “has love” for his estranged wife, Costner replied, “Of course,” adding that he thinks “everybody” involved wants the contentious legal battle to resolve quickly.
Baumgartner filed for divorce from Costner in May after nearly 19 years of marriage, citing “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for the split. The duo tied the knot in 2004 and share sons Cayden, 15, Logan, 14, and daughter Grace, 12.
Court documents filed on August 21 revealed that Baumgartner’s attorney asked the court to pressure Costner to disclose documents relating to his businesses. The court filing accused Costner of “stonewalling” before their child support hearing on Thursday, August 31, hearing, and the duo’s November trial set to address the validity of their prenuptial agreement. The docs also stated that Baumgartner and her attorney are seeking Costner’s gross cash flow available for support and anticipated future income.
An interim ruling in July ordered Costner to pay Baumgartner $129,755 per month for their children’s child care in addition to $200,000 in attorneys’ fees and $100,000 in forensic costs. Baumgartner had previously requested $248,000 a month in child support, but Costner countered that he could not afford that amount due to his 2023 income diminishing following his departure from Yellowstone.
Baumgartner is not only seeking a large increase in child support — around an additional $46,000 per month — on top of the nearly $130,000 she already receives but also trying to challenge the validity of the prenup. She is claiming that amount is necessary for their kids to maintain the same standard of living when they’re with her.
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“The Court is required to set child support at a level that, when the children are with Christine, they live a lifestyle relatively comparable to the one they enjoy when they are with their father,” Baumgartner’s legal team wrote in a brief filed ahead of the duo’s Thursday hearing. “The Court order must allow the children to be supported at a level commensurate with Kevin’s considerable wealth, even if that level of support also improves the standard of living of Christine.”
Baumgartner’s lawyers went on to argue that the twosome’s three children should live in a “comparable house” to their father’s when they are spending time with their mother. (According to court documents obtained by Us on Thursday, Costner’s “compound” has a “fair market value of $65 million to $95 million and a monthly rental value of at least $150,000.”)
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Second chances! Kevin Costner and Christine Baumgartner may have met in the ’90s, but it took the couple years before their connection blossomed into something more. The actor was previously married to Cindy Silva from 1978 to 1994. Over the course of his first marriage, Costner and Silva welcomed daughter Lily (born in August 1986), […]
Baumgartner also asserted that the kids should be able to enjoy the same kinds of vacations with their mom that they have thus far experienced with their dad.
“Because the children fly on private aircraft to go on luxury vacations when they are with their father, the Family Code dictates that Kevin should pay sufficient child support to Christine so that the children can go on comparable vacations when they are with her. This is true even if the child support payments also improve Christine’s lifestyle,” Baumgartner’s lawyers claimed. “In this case, the guideline child support requested by Christine of $175,057 per month will not be sufficient to replicate Kevin’s lifestyle, but it will be sufficient to allow her to provide a lifestyle for the children which is relatively comparable.”
