Kevin Costner has been unhappy that his estranged wife, Christine Baumgartner, is seeking what he believes is an exorbitant amount of child support — and is citing her recent gift from her “boyfriend” as a reason why it is too much.
“Christine’s attack [on me] is a smoke screen to deflect attention from her lack of candor regarding her own financial situation,” court documents filed on August 30, and obtained by Us Weekly, read. “Christine was forced to admit at her deposition that her brother recently gave her $80,000 and her boyfriend recently gave her $20,000.”
During her court testimony late last month, Baumgartner, 49, was point-blank asked about her relationship with Costner’s friend Josh Connor after they were spotted together on a trip to Hawaii. Baumgartner said on the stand that she and Connor were purely platonic friends but did admit that he loaned her $20,000. According to Baumgartner, she sent half of the check to her mother and returned the rest to Connor.
Costner, 68, and Baumgartner split in May after nearly 19 years of marriage, with the former jewelry designer filing for divorce. Baumgartner — who shares sons Cayden, 15, Logan, 14 and daughter Grace, 12, with the Yellowstone star — cited “irreconcilable differences” in her petition and sought $248,000 in child support to keep their kids living the luxurious life that they’ve been accustomed to. (A judge ruled in August that Costner will pay Baumgartner $63,209 per month in support.)
Costner, for his part, has slammed Baumgartner’s claims, noting that he is unable to meet her demands because he does not have that type of money with Yellowstone coming to an end after season 5.
In his most recent filing, Costner has accused Baumgartner of failing to disclose her income and expenses to the court. (She has not addressed the claims.)
“Never mind that Christine has, at all relevant times, had $1.5 million at her disposal to use as she pleases, without prejudice to her challenge to the Premarital Agreement,” the docs read. “All that matters to Christine is that the Court view Kevin as a ‘bad guy’ who wants to ‘ratchet up economic pressure’ and that the Court blindly adopt the image she tries to project as an impoverished victim.”
Despite he-said-she-said court filings since May, Costner broke his silence on the proceedings earlier this month. “This is a horrible place to be, but this is where we’re at,” he told Access Hollywood on Friday, September 1, after his testimony. “It feels so bad and we’re talking about somebody I love on the other side, I just can’t.”
