Kevin Costner recently marked a small victory in his ongoing divorce battle with estranged wife Christine Baumgartner when a judge ruled in his favor in their ongoing custody dispute.
But with the “main showdown” coming in this fall — the exes are set to head to trial over their prenuptial agreement on November 27 — “Kevin knows Christine is far from done,” an insider exclusively shares in the new issue of Us Weekly, on newsstands now. “He’s relieved that step one has [gone his way]… but Christine is sure as hell not giving up on the overall war.”
The Yellowstone actor, 68, and his estranged wife, 49, have been battling it out since May, when Baumgartner filed for divorce after 19 years of marriage.
Initially, Baumgartner requested $248,000 per month in child support from Costner, with whom she shares Cayden, 16, and Hayes, 14, and Grace, 13. (Costner also shares daughters Annie, 39, and Lily, 37, and son Joe, 35, with former wife Cindy Silva and son Liam, 27, with ex Bridget Rooney.)
Baumgartner claimed that money was necessary for their kids to maintain a “comparable” standard of living with her as they have when they’re with Costner. The actor was temporarily ordered to pay Baumgartner $129,755 per month, but at a September 1 child support hearing, a judge set the payments at $63,209.
During the hearing, Costner — who has described himself as a “bit of a unicorn in the [entertainment] business” who “uses his own” bank account to finance his projects — testified that his “biggest concern” is that he could “run out of money… despite the cash he has.” (Earlier this year, Costner revealed that he took out a mortgage on one of his properties in California to fund Horizon, an upcoming four-part film series.)
While Costner has remained diplomatic in public, insisting there’s “no winner” in all of this and that Baumgarten is “an incredible mom,” the insider says that the Hidden Figures star is celebrating privately. “Kevin’s feeling vindicated and cautiously optimistic that he’s turned the corner in this ordeal,” the insider continues, hinting that his guard is up for their next battle.
“It gives him no pleasure to see Christine suffer per say,” adds the insider. “But her outlandish demands infuriated him to no end and the attitude from the get-go has been to stand up for himself and fight back hard for what’s fair.”
Meanwhile, Baumgartner is focusing on the future. “She’s upset but trying to prepare for the next court hearing without letting all the noise and stress get to her,” says the insider. “It’s tough, she hates being painted as this ungrateful gold digger but says that won’t stop her from fighting for what she believes is fair.”
