It has been reported that Kevin Costner’s estranged wife, Christine Baumgartner, claimed that the movie star cold-bloodedly informed his three children that they would be separated after 18 years of marriage.
“After 24 years of relationship, Kevin told our three kids in a Las Vegas hotel room that we were going to get divorced in a 10-minute Zoom conversation while I was away,” the designer said in new court documents obtained by People Wednesday.
“The motivation to do this with such a short Zoom session still confuses me, especially since he plans to be home in five days. He could also easily come home from Las Vegas to have the talk in person.
Baumgartner, 49, claimed that before she told Costner, 69, she told her children that she wanted to tell them “in person and together” because her children’s well-being had always been her “highest priority”.
He added that he feared that the children would learn of the separation “from an external source”.
Baumgartner later claimed, according to People, that Costner “did not consider my proposal to do what I think is right based on the research and my relationship with the children.”
“Instead, he insisted that he had the right to tell them we were getting divorced ‘first’ and privately ‘while I was away,'” he continued in the documents.
Costner’s lawyers could not be immediately reached for comment on Baumgartner’s latest allegations.
However, a source close to the “Yellowstone” star revealed to People that the actor’s ex filed for divorce while filming at the venue in May, and that he “always established FaceTimes with the kids while out of work.”
Baumgartner’s new allegations are the latest in a seemingly increasingly hostile divorce between the former couple.
The handbag designer also recently asked the court to award $248,000 per month in child support for Costner and his three children, Cayden Wyatt, 16, Hayes Logan, 14, and Grace Avery, 13.
He argued that the funds he sought were “less than what is needed to keep the children in their habitual lifestyles”.
As a result of Baumgartner’s request, Costner’s 2022 financial information was released against his will. The “Bodyguard” star had a reported net income of $7,595,520 after taxes last year.
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Costner previously told the judge that he wanted to keep his bank records confidential for fears that he would be “irreparably harmed” by scammers, thieves and “unintended and embarrassing global media attention”.
Baumgartner was the one who ended the marriage nearly two decades later, citing “irreconcilable differences” at the time.
Page Six learned only in May that the filing had taken Costner by surprise.
A source previously told us that the “Dancing With Wolves” star was “stunned”, adding that she still finds the breakup “disappointing” “because she loves it”. [Baumgartner] and he loves his children.”
An insider also denied that infidelity was behind the divorce—despite Costner’s past cheating scandal—and reaffirmed that he and Baumgartner had “no cheating issues”.