Kevin Costner and his wife Christine Baumgartner in 2016. The couple are divorcing after more than 18 years of marriage. (Photo: Portal)
It’s been an eventful few months for the otherwise private Kevin Costner. First, his 18-year-old wife, Christine Costner (née Baumgartner), filed for divorce. A day later, it was reported that the actor’s reign as Dutton Patriarch in Yellowstone was over. Then came allegations that infidelity had something to do with the breakup.
Since then it has only gone uphill. In the divorce filings, Kevin, citing the prenuptial agreement, asked Christine to move out of their home. She scoffed — and made her own demands: $248,000 a month in child support for her three children. The case file is already long, filled with conferences and a hearing date if it comes to that.
So what happened to Kevin and Christine Costner? And is the divorce related to the Yellowstone drama? Here’s everything we know.
We believe the couple split in April
In Christine’s divorce petition, she gave April 11 as the date of separation. On May 1, she officially filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences. In Kevin’s own file, he put the date of their breakup as pending, so it looks like he’s resisting their date.
Kevin didn’t want a divorce
Though it was clear from the actor’s statement, a source told People magazine that it wasn’t “something he wanted or was looking for and if he could change the situation, he would.”
Kevin and Christine share three children: Cayden (15), Hayes (14) and Grace (12). Another insider told Page Six the actor was “stunned” when Christine filed the paperwork.
The actor’s rep previously told Yahoo Entertainment that “circumstances outside” of Kevin’s “control” led to the split.
“It is with great sadness that circumstances beyond his control have arisen which have resulted in Mr. Costner having to attend an annulment lawsuit,” his publicist said in a statement. “We ask that the privacy of him, Christine and their children be respected at this difficult time.”
The story goes on
your divorce claims
In a court statement, Kevin asked Christine to move out of her waterfront home in Carpinteria, California. He referred to their marriage contract, signed in 2004, which stipulated that she had to leave the house he had bought within 30 days of filing for divorce. He said he’s already paid her over $1 million per prenup to find a new home – and offered to pay extra for the moving costs. He also accused his wife, to whom he was not yet married, of withdrawing money from his bank account and charged his credit card a total of $95,000.
Christine responded in a filing, essentially saying he had no “legal” right to evict her – and her children – from the family’s longtime home.
Christine’s own demands have now become clearer. In an application filed last Friday, she requested $248,000 a month in child support. She claimed that this amount “is less than the amount required to keep the children in their usual lifestyle.” She also requested that Kevin pay 100% of private school fees, extracurricular activities, and healthcare costs.
Some startling numbers about Kevin’s finances were released in her file. His 2022 income was listed as $19,517,0641. It said her family’s expenses, excluding taxes, totaled $6,645,285. Her net income after all expenses and taxes was reported as $7,595,520. It has also been pointed out that the maintenance of their several large properties comes in at around US$2 million per year.
Did cheating have anything to do with it?
The internet acts as a judge and jury these days, so it’s no real surprise that social media is convinced of Kevin’s alleged infidelity. An unconfirmed rumor was that Costner impregnated someone who worked at Yellowstone. (“Not true,” a source tells Yahoo.)
Kevin’s rep denied speculation in a statement to Yahoo on Thursday: “Any suggestion of infidelity by Mr. Costner is absolutely untrue.”
Why people were so quick to jump to that conclusion might have something to do with Kevin’s previous marriage to Cindy Costner. In 1994, it was rumored that his relationship with his childhood sweetheart was falling apart due to on-set affairs. The divorce settlement, estimated at $80 million, is one of the most expensive in Hollywood history, according to Forbes.
Since then, rumors have circulated that Christine had become close to a tenant of a house on her Carpinteria estate, leading to Kevin confronting the man. However, Daniel Starr, a real estate developer, denied any involvement on June 22. He told TMZ, “I was just a renter … nothing else.” He said he moved out in late March — apparently just before Kevin and Christine split — even though his lease didn’t expire until June.
Is Kevin’s Divorce Stopping Yellowstone?
nope Sources involved in the production tell Yahoo that Kevin’s divorce has nothing to do with why the back half of season five hasn’t been filmed yet.
“Honestly, a lot of us were surprised when that happened [divorce] The news broke,” says an insider, adding there is no sign the former couple is in trouble.
The Yellowstone issue is purely professional, as Kevin instead wanted to focus on filming the second chapter of his passion project, Horizon: An American Saga. Because that was his priority, he and Paramount couldn’t agree on an agreement about his appearance. The network announced that the series would end after the last six episodes and that Kevin had not committed to appearing in it.
Yellowstone creator Taylor Sheridan told in a June 21 interview that he was “disappointed” that Kevin prioritized his film over the hit series. “I really hope so [the movie is] it’s worth it – and that it’s good.”
Sheridan said Kevin “and the network were arguing about when he might be done with Yellowstone.” I said, “We can certainly work out a timeline.” [his preferred exit date]’Which we did.” Sheridan claimed that he “didn’t dictate the schedule. I don’t control when filming begins.” He also denied that he and Kevin had a violent argument on set, which rumored to have led to Kevin’s exit.
The outlet noted that talks are ongoing about getting Kevin to come back to film a few scenes to complete his storyline. The show, whose midseason finale aired Jan. 1, was originally slated to return this summer. However, it was postponed to November. Now there could be further delays due to the writers’ strike.
Christine wanted to clarify in her legal filing that she had nothing to do with Kevin’s Yellowstone exit.
“I did not push Kevin to leave the Yellowstone show,” she wrote.
A Costner family source previously told People magazine that the actor’s demanding work schedule — juggling Yellowstone and Horizon — was difficult for Christine before she pulled the plug on the marriage. However, the divorce “has nothing to do with Yellowstone,” an insider said. “The two situations are unrelated.”
Editor’s Note: This post was originally published and updated at 1:08 PM ET on Thursday, May 4th.