Actor Kevin Costner‘s antagonistic divorce came as a shock to fans — but the “Yellowstone” star claims estranged wife Christine Baumgartner may have had a plan all along.
In court docs filed Thursday, Costner, 68, accuses Baumgartner of trying to rob him blind with expensive purchases and took out cash with credit cards from the staff that runs the family house — and he believes she devised this plan before she filed for divorce in May, Page Six reports.
The filing alleges Baumgartner, 49 “has shown a disturbing propensity in the last several months, both before and after separation, to take [Kevin’s] property without his knowledge or consent, especially since this case was filed.”
Among the expenses outlined in the documents was an alleged $25,000 — taken from Costner’s property funds — paid to a Los Angeles criminal defense lawyer and an expensive vehicle purchased months before the pair called it quits —Costner previously claimed he was “required” to reduce his ex’s credit card limit to $30,000 per month due to her excessive spending.
The documents further claim that Baumgartner paid her divorce lawyer, Susan Wiesner, “on the credit card of an employee which is traditionally used for Costner family house charges and paid by [Kevin].”
Additionally, Costner’s lawyers allege that handbag designer bought an expensive vehicle months before they separated. Costner’s attorneys argued that Baumgartner buying the car was a red flag because the couple always leased their cars. Per the prenuptial agreement signed by Costner and Baumgartner before their 2004 wedding, she is entitled to keep her personal vehicle in the event of a breakup.
Baumgartner’s purchase was a sign that she “had been planning her exit long before she told [Kevin] in April 2023,” his lawyers claimed, further alleging that Baumgartner refused to agree that she wouldn’t swipe items from her and Costner’s home when ordered to move out.
Costner and Baumgartner share children Cayden, 16, Hayes, 14, and Grace, 13. Baumgartner filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences and listing their date of separation as April 11.
In a court filing of his own, Costner noted that there was a clause in the pair’s prenup requiring Baumgartner to leave their shared home within a month of their split.
