Reports suggest that renowned American actor Kevin Costner was taken by surprise when his wife Christine Baumgartner served him with divorce papers at the beginning of May.
Unnamed sources claimed to The Sun that Costner had anticipated a more amicable divorce process, where he would be the one serving her the papers in accordance with their prenuptial agreement.
Instead, Baumgartner, 49, who is seeking $248,000 per month in child support, served Costner with the papers the day after he had informed their children about the impending divorce.
According to a source quoted in the publication, the 68-year-old Yellowstone actor had sat the family down, told them about the divorce, and began the paperwork through his lawyer, aiming for a peaceful process for the sake of their children. The source added, “He wanted everything to be peaceful for the sake of his kids and told Christine he didn’t want a messy divorce because he’d already been through one.”
However, Baumgartner has put forth a different account of how their children learned about the divorce, as evidenced in a court filing obtained by People. She stated that Costner informed their three children through a brief Zoom chat while he was away filming in Las Vegas, a sequence of events that left her puzzled as Costner was due to return home within days.
Baumgartner also claimed that she had proposed a unified front with both parents for the announcement, but Costner was insistent on sharing the news without her presence, disregarding her suggestions based on research and her relationship with the children.
Costner and Baumgartner share three children – sons Cayden (15) and Hayes (14), and daughter Grace (13). In addition, Costner has four adult children from previous relationships – Annie (39), Lily (36), Joe (35), and Liam (26).
