Last year, I was sort of obsessed with Kevin Costner and Christine Baumgartner’s messy divorce. Everything’s been finalized now, so I can say that yes, Christine often came across like a spoiled trophy wife who was out to get as much money as she could. But throughout the back-and-forth accusations, I was completely shocked by Costner’s behavior and how it seemed like he had been financially abusing Christine for years. By September, Costner settled the financial stuff and they finalized their divorce. Christine claimed that she wanted to go back to school and reenter the workforce. I thought the chances were pretty good that she would end up finding another wealthy man and simply getting remarried. Even during the divorce mess, Christine was seen on vacation with one of Costner’s friends and neighbors. And it looks like that guy is the one?
Christine Costner is “very happy with” boyfriend Josh Connor after her divorce from Kevin Costner. Connor “gives her a lot of attention,” a source tells PEOPLE.
“Josh is great for” Baumgartner, 50, the source says of the financier, a longtime friend and former Santa Barbara, California neighbor of Kevin and Christine, whose divorce was finalized in February.
Connor and Baumgartner have been “spending time together as a blended family,” adds the source. He is “around a lot and gives her attention. She’s happy to spend a lot of time with Josh. He’s more of an ideal partner for her.”
PEOPLE exclusively reported that Baumgartner had been dating Connor for months in January, when a friend of Baumgartner’s said the two had been seeing each other “since she split from Kevin.” The exes settled their divorce in September 2023 after months of legal back and forth.
The financier “was initially just a friend,” they added at the time. “She likes hanging out with him. He is a divorced dad and understands what she’s been going through.”
It sounds vapid to say “I like him because he pays attention to me,” but you have to understand that Costner was constantly on location and Christine was mostly raising their kids alone anyway. She wanted to be with someone who would be around and be a real partner. Looks like she’s getting that. Incidentally, this People story wasn’t the only pro-Christine piece this week – the Mail also had an exclusive about how Christine wants to marry Josh. As I said months ago, that absolutely looked like that would be her next move. Honestly, good for her.
Kevin Costner's ex Christine Baumgartner and lover Josh Connor enjoy dinner with newly bonded family as friends reveal they're planning to marry https://t.co/KulKK1FzB3 pic.twitter.com/ZCLA2rlXIg
— Daily Mail Online (@MailOnline) May 29, 2024
Photos courtesy of Backgrid, Cover Images.
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- Los Angeles, CA – Christine arrived by limousine at the Santa Barbara Courthouse and is met by a woman presumed to be her lawyer. Pictured: Christine Baumgartner BACKGRID USA 5 JULY 2023 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- Los Angeles, CA – Christine arrived by limousine at the Santa Barbara Courthouse and is met by a woman presumed to be her lawyer. Pictured: Christine Baumgartner BACKGRID USA 5 JULY 2023 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- 94th Academy Awards (Oscars) – Red Carpet Arrivals Featuring: Christine Baumgartner, Kevin Costner Where: Los Angeles, California, United States When: 27 Mar 2022 Credit: Abby Grant/Cover Images
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- Vanity Fair Oscar Party held at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts Featuring: Kevin Costner and Christine Baumgartner Where: Los Angeles, California, United States When: 27 Mar 2022 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages/Cover Images **ONLY AVAILABLE FOR NORTH AMERICA**
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- USA Rights Only, Los Angeles, CA – 20220327- The 94th Academy Awards – Arrivals and Press Room -PICTURED: Christine Baumgartner and Kevin Costner -PHOTO by: Geisler/Dave Bedrosian/DDP/INSTARimages.com -ddp_16922393 This is an editorial, rights-managed image. Please contact Instar Images LLC for licensing fee and rights information at sales@instarimages.com or call +1 212 414 0207 This image may not be published in any way that is, or might be deemed to be, defamatory, libelous, pornographic, or obscene. Please consult our sales department for any clarification needed prior to publication and use. Instar Images LLC reserves the right to pursue unauthorized users of this material. If you are in violation of our intellectual property rights or copyright you may be liable for damages, loss of income, any profits you derive from the unauthorized use of this material and, where appropriate, the cost of collection and/or any statutory damages awarded Featuring: Christine Baumgartner and Kevin Costner Where: Los Angeles, California, United States When: 27 Mar 2022 Credit: Geisler/Dave Bedrosian/DDP/INSTA **USA Rights Only**
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- Vanity Fair Oscar Party at Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts Featuring: Kevin Costner, Christine Baumgartner Where: Beverly Hills, California, United States When: 27 Mar 2022 Credit: Abby Grant/Cover Images
IDK I mean, people can have opinions about how aggressively she’s handled the divorce and how OTT her demands have been but calling her a spoiled trophy wife isn’t fair IMO.
She met him when she was 30 and he was 50–they were both adults. She was married to him for 20 years and they raised 3 children together. She has a business degree from Cal State and was a handbag designer so she did have a career, even if it never really took off. It’s not like she met him when she was 20, they were married for 3 years and now she’s taking him for all that he has. They built a life together. Maybe she hasn’t handled it as well as she could have but she’s entitled to what she’s entitled to under the law. She contributed to the marriage, she put up with a TON of his bullshit, she raised their three kids…she deserves adequate compensation to both support her lifestyle and for what she’s invested in that marriage IMO.
Good for Christine. She wants a partner who she can spend time with and even at Kevin’s age he shows no signs of slowing down. Even though he was nice to Harry and Megs, I’m still not a fan of his At. All.
He was not financially abusing her. There is evidence that woman got everything she wanted even 5,000 every month to pay her mother’s mortgage. Forensic accountants proved she spent on average 18,000 a month.
Based on the timeline, she was already having an affair and that precipitated the divorce. She even went on vacation with him while the divorce was going on. Whatever happened had nothing to do with any financial abuse whatsoever. So we need to put that to bed. She just thought that by divorcing she will be getting boat loads of money for her personal use. It didn’t happen that way coz she signed a prenup. Wish her well.
She’s a gold digger. Good for her.
I mean, who do people expect her to meet? She’s part of that world. She IS wealthy, whether she came from wealth or not. She’s living in neighbourhoods with other rich people. All of her friends are likely wealthy. All of her children’s friends’ parents are likely wealthy. Of course she’s going to meet someone wealthy and eventually remarry.
She did not come from wealth and that was Kevin’s friend too. Yea no.
Kevin is wealthy. So I was always on the side of getting as much as she could and still feel that way. But it’s very clear she was having an affair on Kevin with this friend of theirs and only left once she had her next guy lined up and it was serious.
She was out buying her parents new, expensive vehicles before she left. I get for herself. But her parents? She went on vacation with the kids soon after the split with this guy. How confusing or the kids. He loaned her a lot of money during the divorce. She was never on her own navigating a split. She had the new, well-off guy, who was in her social group.
So I don’t really care about either Kevin or Christine as far as their separation and divorce. She still won’t need to work. She lived a great life financially and only left once she had another rich man. I ended up having zero feelings about the divorce nor am on anybody’s side.
The words in this report are specifically for Kevin to read 😂 she probably had great material opportunities during her marriage to Kevin, but he wasn’t around and/or was fooling around, so she did what she felt she had to do. Happiness to all in this mess!
I’m not sure it’s “good for her” to marry another man who makes considerably more than her no income. Seems to me that it sets up the exact same scenario. Maybe he’s great and it’s all good but I don’t think we need to be cheering women on to remain dependent on someone else’s income.
Her income is $756,000 a year per the divorce settlement. Yes it’s support coming from Kevin but it’s essentially her income nevertheless. And I don’t see why it’s a problem if a woman is dependent on someone else’s income (or vise verse) if it’s a mutually agreed-upon arrangement? My mother was financially dependent on my dad and while I would not choose that for myself, I loved having a SAHM when I was a kid.
$756,000 a year? Wow. I could retire on that income, although her set would think that’s a paltry sum.
I’m reacting to the “atta girl” for landing another rich boyfriend/husband to be. She claimed to be financially abused, so maybe not get right back into that situation and build a life for yourself first.
I have zero problem with a partnership in which one partner brings in the outside money. But I don’t think we need to celebrate a woman bagging a man with money as if that’s some ultimate destination for a woman.
@kitten but she couldn’t pay off her parents mortgage before she filed for divorce?
@Josephine and yes her Costner wasn’t around because he has to work. He wasn’t off somewhere twirling his hair. She “had” to raise the kids the kids alone. What is that even. What else what she going ?
So she made sure she had a jump off before she started divorce proceedings. Or, her new relationship gave her the strength to leave. 🤷♀️
GIrl’s got game. No shade from me. Kevin kicked her out of the house with the children in it? Okay, buy a new house that has her name on the deed and move the kids in with her for her share of custody rights.
Kevin was sort of a j*rk, playing thug-of-war over divorce fees and a lame house with the mother of his children, after earning hundreds of millions with Yellowstone.
But this lady set herself up for whatever ‘financial abuse’ he’d incurred on. Despite having acknowledge her need to become self-sustaining… She just clinged on to leech the next well-off guy that crossed her path.
Whatever studies or drive she used to have, obviously being a tradwife is closest to her current goal.
100%