Following a divorce hearing attended by the 'Yellowstone' actor and his estranged wife Christine Baumgartner, a judge orders him to pay her $63k in child support, less than half the previous amount.
- Sep 2, 2023
AceShowbiz - Kevin Costner has scored a major victory in his divorce battle with Christine Baumgartner. Following the latest divorce hearing attended by the estranged couple, Christine's child support has been cut in half.
Kevin and Christine attended the hearing at a Santa Barbara court on Friday, September 1. At the end of the day, the Los Angeles judge overseeing the case ruled that the actor has to pay his estranged wife $63,209 per month in child support, which he said was appropriate.
That's less than half of what she was getting in temporary support. She currently gets $129,000, but fought for a significant increase to $175,057/month, claiming that higher amount "will not be sufficient to replicate Kevin's lifestyle, but it will be sufficient to allow her to provide a lifestyle for the children which is relatively comparable."
Met outside the court before the hearing, Kevin told Access about his divorce, "This is a horrible place to be but this is where we're at. It feels so bad, we're talking about somebody I love on the other side. I just can't." Looking dapper in a blue suit, he admitted that he "still has love" for Christine and that he thinks "everybody" hopes things are resolved quickly.
During the hearing, Kevin took the stand and said he wanted to pass his properties down to his kids, insisting, "I don't hide money from my wife." When asked by Christine's attorney John Rydell if he would swap homes with his ex, he burst out laughing and quipped, "This is tricky!"
"No, I would not but not because I don't think that home is comparable," he said, before explaining, "I have raised three children in my home, their hands are in the stone. I think most people would understand that." Smiling, the 68-year-old added, "There are some features [of Christine's new house] I'd like to have in mine."
At one point, Kevin apologized to his estranged wife. "I want to help but the thought of having things inflated to the point I can't do what I want to do…," he said when taking the stand for a second time during the final hour of the hearing. "Somehow in this unusual world, we didn't make it and for that, I'm sorry."
