Shortly before his divorce, Kevin Costner and his now-estranged wife Christine Baumgartner kicked out a houseguest who had become close to her, according to a new report.
The Sun reported that tech titan Daniel Starr was staying at Kevin and Christine’s beachfront guest house in Carpinteria, California, for more than $60,000 a month, but they wanted him out after a heated exchange of blows. After the disagreement, the “Yellowstone” star sent multiple legal letters and emails asking Daniel to leave.
Chelsea Lauren/Shutterstock for the SAG Awards
“Daniel was really happy to live in the house. It’s right on the beach and he has a 4-year-old son who he wanted to be comfortable with,” a source told the British tabloid. “After he moved in, he became close friends with Chris and Kevin. They hung out with their kids. But Kevin was always out filming so Chris must have been lonely.”
After Daniel – who founded video game streaming service GameMine – signed a year-long lease in June 2022, he and Christine “hung out a lot,” the source claims, noting that she visited the guest house “almost daily.”
About halfway through the tenancy, however, Daniel and Christine had a falling out, as the source claimed she “didn’t like it.” [his] Attitudes towards their friendship” and “texted him and said she wanted him out.” Kevin caught wind of the bitterness and things reportedly escalated.
“Daniel really admired Kevin and thought he was an excellent father to his children. But Kevin went all out and sided with his wife,” the insider claimed. “Ultimately, he wasn’t willing to listen to Daniel.”
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Daniel ended his lease in March, three months before the lease expired. On June 21, TMZ reached out to Daniel in Ventura, Calif., as he was just exiting a Starbucks, where he said there was “no way” he “got hooked up” with Christine, as some have suggested. Daniel said he’s just trying to “be friendly with everyone” and has “a tenant-landlord relationship.” [with them]nothing else.”
He declined to elaborate on what happened and sounded sympathetic towards the Costners, telling TMZ, “They have kids and they’re getting divorced. …I just hope it ends peacefully for them. I hope his divorce goes through and his kids are minimally affected.”
On May 1, Christine filed for divorce from her 18-year-old husband, which led to another housing issue: TMZ reported last week that Christine refused to leave her marital home, even though the marriage contract required her to go.
The website obtained documents showing that the Oscar winner had asked the court to practically force Christine out on the grounds that she had had enough time to leave the house. Kevin also claimed he’d already given his ex nearly $1.5 million for a new job due to his prenup obligations. Furthermore, he argued that after the breakup, his ex spent $100,000 of his fortune without his consent.
Kevin owns three houses and the marriage contract, signed in 2004, stipulates that Christine must leave all property behind in the event of a separation. According to court records, Kevin is willing to contribute $10,000 towards their move and is willing to pay $30,000 a month for a rental home as part of his child support obligations.