COSTNERS AT WAR

Kevin and Christine are embroiled in a costly, messy divorce as cheating rumours swirl

- NICI DE WET

THEY were together for nearly 20 years and made a striking couple on the red carpet – him all old-school Hollywood heartthrob, her all tousled sexy glamour.

They seemed like the kind of couple who might just buck the Tinseltown trend and go the distance. But it wasn’t meant to be.

In May Christine Baumgartner dropped the bombshell news that she was filing for divorce from Kevin Costner – and since then things have imploded into a big, fat, ugly mess.

There’s bitterness, there are accusations, there’s blame. And at the heart of it all is that one thing that always makes everything more complicated: money – and in this case, big, big money.

After the split was announced, Kevin’s publicist, Arnold Robinson, said “circumstances beyond Mr Costner’s control led to him having to participate in the dissolution of marriage”. And dissolving this marriage is turning out to be anything but simple. Model and handbag designer Christine (49) has accused the 68-year-old Yellowstone star of kicking their three children out of their house.

The house in question is a $145 million (R2,7 billion) compound in the Californian celebrity enclave of Carpinteria. The seaside property, which belongs to Kevin, has been their marital home since 2004.

According to the terms of their pre- nup, Christine has 30 days to move out. But she’s refusing, stating in court papers it’s where their children, Cayden (15), Hayes (14) and Grace (12), have “lived their entire lives”.