Did Kevin Costner channel his Yellowstone role in his divorce from Christine Baumgartner? Inside the exes’ messy, multimillion-dollar legal battle over their mansion and child support for 3 teen kids
- We got déjà vu when Baumgartner filed for divorce against Costner, then Paramount axed Yellowstone, the Western TV drama for which the Hollywood star won a Golden Globe
- In the 90s, Costner’s first wife Cindy Silva walked away with millions, then his film Waterworld tanked – now, the actor is focusing on producing Horizon: An American Saga
On a sunny day in January, Kevin Costner stood on the sprawling green lawn of his California beachfront property, in sunglasses and a quarter-zip jumper, and delivered his lines.
Hours later, Costner won the award for best actor in a drama series for Yellowstone. Regina Hall, the Golden Globes host, couldn’t help but crack a joke onstage while accepting the award on his behalf.
“This is a sad story right now. He’s stuck in Santa Barbara,” she said, laughing. “Let’s pray, everyone.”
It seemed Costner pretty much had it all: a doting wife, a beautiful home, a booming career.
Four months later, two of those three things had soured.
It happened quickly. In May, Baumgartner, 49, filed for divorce, citing “irreconcilable differences”. Days later, Paramount announced that Yellowstone would end with its fifth season.
Perhaps it felt a little like déjà vu. Costner’s personal and professional misfortunes had similarly collided in 1994, when his first wife, Cindy Silva, divorced him and walked away with a settlement estimated at US$80 million. Less than a year later, Costner’s career sank thanks to the critical and box-office disaster that was Waterworld, a film that Costner not only starred in and produced but personally invested US$22 million in.