It centers on the ‘ruthless’ Kevin Costner’s toxic £200million divorce drama and his amazing deal with his furious wife Christine
KEVIN COSTNERS imploding personal life has all the hallmarks of a Hollywood remake.
The “Bodyguard” star is in the midst of an increasingly acrimonious divorce from the mother of his three children, Christine Baumgartner, and there have been rumors of third-party involvement in the split.
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In addition, the 68-year-old’s award-winning TV hit “Yellowstone” is set to end after five series due to tensions between Kevin and series creator Taylor Sheridan.
28 years ago, Kevin split from his first wife, Cindy Silva, 66 – mother of three of his other children – and shared stories of torts with other women.
There have also been stories of directors falling out with the single-minded Oscar winner.
The relationships of both Kevins lasted about 20 years.
The first divorce cost Kevin £75million, one of the most expensive show business breakups of his time, and the second divorce he says has left him “homeless”.
The actor, through his lawyer, has accused Christine, 49, of refusing to leave their £115million beachfront complex in Carpinteria, California until he met her “financial demands”.
He also alleged that she used his credit card to pay for her legal bills without his permission.
Christine, in turn, claims her husband is trying to “kick” their three school-age children out of the house.
Pals denied that an affair was to blame for the acrimonious split.
However, there were reports the relationship went downhill after Christine became close to tech entrepreneur Daniel Starr, 42, while Kevin was away filming.
The movie star confronted Daniel – a tenant at his plush estate – and a furious argument culminated in a legal battle with Kevin and his wife trying to evict Daniel from their £50,000-a-month guest house.
He has since moved away.
Veteran film writer Garth Pearce, who is collaborating on a book with Kevin, says: “We met while he was contemplating marrying Christine.
“He said, ‘She goes with me everywhere – it’s a unique part of our relationship. I now find that it’s the only way to live.
“But she stopped traveling and the problems started.”
Kevin’s first wife, Cindy, was arguably entitled to a significant portion of his fortune.
They met in college when he was studying business administration rather than drama.
During their honeymoon in 1978, Kevin decided he could make it to Hollywood after meeting legendary Welsh actor Richard Burton on the flight home.
Cindy ended up working as a flight attendant while Kevin tried to launch his career by taking up soft porn.
“Cindy was there when I had no money in the bank and no prospects,” he once said.
He was ruthless
However, Kevin rose to fame by directing and starring in Dances With Wolves, which won the 1991 Oscar for Best Picture.
It was quickly followed by the hits “Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves” and “JFK” in the same year, then “The Bodyguard” with Whitney Houston in 1992.
Perhaps the aggravating factor in his divorce was the numerous reports in the press about Kevin’s infidelity.
An unauthorized autobiography claimed he had a date with nightclub landlady Sheri Stewart in London in 1990.
Actress Christine Dinard claimed she had an 11-year relationship with the star, and in 1994 it was reported that he met hula dancer Michelle Amaral while filming the over-budget box office flop Waterworld.
Kevin said: “Despite all the rumours, I haven’t slept with many women. When I was working 17 hour days on film sets, I didn’t have the time or energy to even think about women.”
Kevin and Cindy had three children together – Annie, now 39, Lily, 36, and Joe, 35.
The announcement of their split in June 1994 was followed by various stories about Kevin’s uncompromising approach to filmmaking.
He banned “Robin Hood” director Kevin Reynolds from the editing room and fell out with “Bodyguard” director Kevin Jackson over the final cut.
Garth, who spent time with the star while working on a book about the making of Robin Hood, says: “He was ruthless. He clashed with his best friend, director Kevin Reynolds, over the editing of key scenes.
“He lectured his co-star Christian Slater, which upset the young star deeply. One morning, on his way to the film set, he said to a chatty backup driver, “Can you please shut up and just drive the car?” He was the boss – and he wanted everyone to know.”
Kevin met supermodel Christine on a golf course in 1996 while he was still married to Cindy.
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However, their relationship only began after he was divorced and fathered a child during a brief fling with heiress Bridget Rooney.
Father of seven Kevin claimed Bridget “forced” him to give birth to their 26-year-old son Liam in 1996.
He said coldly: “My first three children were desired while Liam was forced upon me through no fault of my own.
“I’ll try to help this kid, but I’m afraid it will never mean the same to me as the others.”
Between his two marriages, the nubile bachelor was also romantically linked to supermodel Elle Macpherson, Friends star Courteney Cox and Playboy model Bridget Buxom.
Last week, legal filings revealed how cautious Kevin was about walking down the aisle a second time.
In a statement to the court, he said he didn’t have a real home after his first divorce.
It said, “I was married before and after the separation I was homeless and unable to live in my own home.”
Because of this, he asked Christine to sign a prenuptial agreement, which his lawyers said meant she would have to leave their marriage within 30 days if the couple separated.
Struck by the scandal
He said, “I made it clear to her that I would not remarry without being clear that my separate condos are mine and will be my home no matter what happens in our marriage.”
Christine had her own pre-marriage dealbreaker – Kevin had to agree to be a dad again.
Just before their glamorous wedding at his 160-acre estate in Aspen, Colorado, in 2004, he told Garth, “I didn’t want any more children, but she made it clear that that’s the deal. So, based on that, I will move on.”
True to his word, the couple became parents to Cayden Wyatt, 15, Hayes Logan, 14, and Grace Avery, 13.
But two years after their marriage, Kevin was rocked by a scandal.
A court in Dundee, Scotland, heard an unnamed masseuse had accused him of performing a sex act in front of her during his honeymoon in St Andrews in 2004.
Kevin denied the claim.
The spa worker’s case was that she had been wrongfully fired for reporting the alleged crime to her superiors.
She later received an undisclosed payout from the hotel.
Despite the allegations, Christine and Kevin’s 18-year marriage appeared to be one of the strongest in Hollywood.
The model became a successful handbag designer and her husband’s once-tarnished acting reputation has recovered.
Kevin won emmy 2012 for the miniseries Hatfields & McCoys and this year a Golden Globe for Yellowstone.
However, there is evidence that being away from home has caused problems in the production of the hit series in the state of Montana.
It was reported that he had a falling out with creator Sheridan over his insistence on limiting the number of days he could be on set.
There were also claims that Kevin was unhappy with the story development surrounding his character, John Dutton.
An insider said Taylor told his star to “stick with acting.”
Last month, Christine caused a stir in the show business world when she announced she was getting divorced.
A source claimed Kevin was caught off guard by the move. The boyfriend told the New York Post, “Kevin was very surprised by Christine’s behavior, he obviously doesn’t want the divorce and would take it back.”
It’s disappointing, he loves her and he loves his kids.”
The pal said no one else was involved in the split.
Hope for a reconciliation seems slim as Kevin has hired top divorce lawyer Laura Wasser, whose previous clients include Kim Kardashian, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s ex-wife Maria Shriver, Johnny Depp, Angelina Jolie and Britney Spears.
During a court hearing, Wasser claimed Kevin gave Christine almost £1million to help her find a new home.
He has also promised to pay £24,000 a month in “temporary” child support and is said to want joint custody.
But in court filings, Wasser claimed, “Christine has taken the position that she will not move out until Kevin agrees to various financial demands.”
Her team also said there was no legal reason for her removal.
They added, “This RFO (Request for Order) aims to evict Christine and her three children from the home where the children have lived their entire lives.”
Kevin can’t move to his 12 bedroom Aspen ranch as it’s rented out at an estimated £28,000 a night.
Where the feuding couple should live will be discussed at a hearing next month.
The judge is unlikely to agree on a split of the star’s £200million fortune anytime soon.
Before his second marriage, Kevin told Garth, “I’m going in with my eyes wide open.”
Surely he would now want to rewrite the script.