Kevin Costner’s Messy Divorce Gets Even Messier
People.com has reported a new wrinkle in Kevin Costner and Christine Baumgartner’s ongoing divorce, in which Baumgartner may have to forfeit her $1.5 million settlement since she is challenging the pair’s prenuptial agreement.
The attorneys for Costner quoted the agreement in recently filed legal documents, which reads, “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.”
Kevin Costner‘s wife Christine Baumgartner could lose the $1.5 million already paid out to her because of their ongoing legal dispute.
According to People, Costner has already paid out the settlement, and the prenuptial agreement was brought up when Baumgartner requested that Costner pay her attorney fees.
Kevin Costner’s lawyers countered the request by saying that Baumgartner should be paying Kevin Costner’s attorney fees for the divorce. In response to the prenuptial agreement being brought up, Baumgartner’s legal team said, “there has been no determination by this Court that the parties’ premarital agreement is enforceable.”
Baumgartner filed a petition for dissolution of marriage on May 1 and has since been ordered to leave the couple’s California compound by July 31.
Matrimonial attorney Marilyn Chinitz, who doesn’t represent either party, told People that Baumgartner’s argument likely won’t pan out, saying, “the agreement is presumed to be a valid agreement until such time as a court sets it aside.”
To determine the validity of the agreement, a November 27 court date has been set. However, Chinitz went on to explain that even if the judge doesn’t rule in favor of Baumgartner’s argument, she may only have to pay Kevin Costner’s attorney fees and not pay back the entirety of the divorce settlement.
Baumgartner filed a petition for dissolution of marriage on May 1 and has since been ordered to leave the couple’s California compound by July 31.
Baumgartner previously stated that she wouldn’t be vacating the home until there was a child support agreement in place for the pair’s children, Cayden, Hayes, and Grace. The initially proposed sum was $248,000 a month, which Kevin Costner’s team pushed back against as “inflated,” during earlier divorce proceedings.
Since then, Costner has increased his proposed child support amount to $51,940 per month, though it seems like this is still a point being argued over.
Both Kevin Costner and Baumgartner requested joint custody in their initial divorce filings, and ‘irreconcilable differences’ were cited as the reason for the filing by Baumgartner. This is clearly going to be a complicated process for the couple, and it likely will be a bit of a long road before these proceedings are completely settled.
For now, it seems like some things will have to wait to be ironed out until the November trial date set for the prenuptial agreement.
Kevin Costner’s Horizon
Kevin Costner is also working on one of the biggest projects of his career amidst his divorce proceedings. Costner is starring in, directing, co-writing, and producing his ambitious Horizon project, which is a multi-film tale of Western expansion that also stars Sienna Miller, Sam Worthington, Luke Wilson, and Thomas Haden Church.
Since beginning work on the project, Costner has said he hasn’t felt this way about a project since his Oscar-winning film Dances with Wolves and has taken out a mortgage on his home to help cover some of the film’s budget.
Filming of the first Horizon installment has been completed, and Kevin Costner has stated he hopes to release it before the end of 2023. Meanwhile, Costner can also be seen in the upcoming second part of the fifth season of Yellowstone. This will be Costner’s last season in Yellowstone, and the second part is expected to come out later this year.
