Breaking Up Is Hard To Do
Divorce ain’t easy—and it’s even hard when you’re in the public eye, with no pre-nup, and a whole lot of money to split. Some of these celeb exes walked away with literal fortunes—and one actor got caught in not one, but two expensive divorces on this list.
Kevin Costner And Christine Baumgartner
Approximately $3 million in child support over the next four years
Costner’s divorce from Christine Baumgartner was finalized in early 2024, with a judge ordered him to pay nearly $64,000 monthly in child support—which is nothing, considering he spent $38 million of his own money to make Horizon: An American Saga.
The lack of settlement is likely due to a prenup, which itself is due to lessons Costner learned during his first divorce, which we’ll read about further along…
Featureflash Photo Agency, Shutterstock
Tom Cruise And Katie Holmes
$400,000 per year in child support for 12 years ($4.8 million)
Though Cruise’s camp has kept the financial details of his splits from Nicole Kidman and Katie Holmes very tightly guarded, it was revealed that in his divorce from Holmes, he was ordered to pay $400,000 per year in child support for 12 years, a settlement which recently came to an end, as Suri turned 18 in February of 2024.
Amber Heard And Johnny Depp
$7 million
Heard and Depp’s mud-slinging divorce was truly one for the books—and it ended with Heard getting a $7 million settlement, even though she could’ve gotten more, as they had no pre-nup.
Slash And Perla Farrar
$6.6 million ($8 million inflation adjusted) plus $100,000 per month spousal support and $39,000 per month child support
The Guns N’ Roses guitarist was with Perla Farrar from 2001 to 2014 and they had two sons, which led to the hefty settlement awarded to Farrar upon their divorce.
Michael Jackson And Debbie Rowe
$8.5 million
The pair, who met at Jackson’s dermatologist’s office, weren’t together long. Though likely a marriage of convenience—they had two children together—Rowe walked away with $8.5 million.
Brad Pitt And Angelina Jolie
Approximately $9.3 million
Though the details of their separation and divorce are unknown, Jolie accused Pitt of not paying child support in 2018. In response, his lawyers claimed he’d paid $1.3 million worth of “bills” over the years, and that he’d lent her $8 million to buy a home.
Mike Tyson And Robin Givens
$10 million
When these two divorced in 1989 after a year of marriage, Givens got $10 million in the settlement. At the time, it was one of the most expensive divorces in sports history.
Lance Armstrong And Kristin Richard
$14 million
How much would you pay to date Sheryl Crow? When the disgraced athlete filed for divorce from his first wife as six years of marriage, he forked over $14 million as part of the settlement—and began to date Crow that same year.
Jennifer Lopez And Cris Judd
$14 million
When Jlo divorced her former backup dancer in 2003 after less than a year of marriage, she gave up $14 million.
Janet Jackson And Rene Elizondo Jr
$15 million
Jackson married the music video director in secret—so secret, in fact, that no one knew she was married until she filed for divorce after over a decade of marriage. Though he initially asked for $25 million, he ended up walking away with $15 million.
Mick Jagger And Jerry Hall
$15 to $25 million ($27 to $46 million adjusted)
It’s no surprise that someone like Mick Jagger had to fork over some cash to an ex in his lifetime—but this entry is unique on this list, as Jagger and Hall were never married, except for in an unofficial ceremony in Bali. Despite that, the many years they spent together meant they had common law status, which led to their undisclosed settlement which was estimated to have cost the rocker between $15 and $25 million.
Michael Strahan and Jean Muggli
$15.3 million
Strahan and Muggli were married for seven years and had two children before splitting. Between playing for the New York Giants and hosting Good Morning America, he’d earned quit a bit during their marriage—and $15.3 million went to her.
Matt Lauer And Annette Roque
$20 million
After a number of disturbing allegations about Lauer led to his firing from NBC, his wife of 20 years filed for divorce and was ultimately awarded a $20 million settlement—a cool million for each year they were married.
David Shankbone, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Lionel Richie And Diane Alexander
$20 million ($32 million adjusted)
It ended dramatically as it began. Richie’s first marriage ended after his wife Brenda Harvey caught him at Diane Alexander’s apartment. The ensuing fight led to several charges against Harvey. Richie went on to marry Diane two years later, and when they divorced in 2004, he ponied up $20 million.
Johnny Carson And Joanna Holland
$20 million ($57 million adjusted)
Carson secretly married former model Holland on the 10th anniversary of The Tonight Show—and the same year he divorced his second wife. They lasted 11 years before Holland filed for divorce in what turned into a long and drawn out case with an 80-page settlement.
Princess Diana And Prince Charles
$25 million
When this doomed royal marriage came to an end, Diana lost her title of Princess of Wales—but she did get $25 million.
Donald Trump And Ivana Trump
$25 million ($54 million adjusted)
After 14 years and three children, it all ended with a $25 million divorce settlement in 1991. It sounds paltry now, but at the time, it was a big deal.
Hulk Hogan And Linda Marie Claridge
$30 million
Though the two were together for 26 years, Linda wasted no time filing for divorce when news came out that Hogan had an affair with one of his daughter’s friends. He paid the price for his indiscretion.
Kelsey Grammer And Camille Grammer
$30 million ($41 million adjusted)
Grammer’s 2011 divorce from his wife of 14 years cost him a lot of that Frasier salary—but that’s not all. It was rumored that Camille told Grammer she would let him go without a fight, as long as he let her appear on Real Housewives of Beverly Hills for one year before separating.
Ted Danson And Casey Coates
$30 million ($63 million adjusted)
Danson married Coates in 1977, when he was just a lowly soap actor. Coates had a stroke while giving birth to their first child in 1979, and Danson spent years taking care of her. Their remained married throughout the first decade of Cheers’ run, until Danson’s affair with Whoopi Goldberg exploded in the tabloids, and led to their divorce.
aitchison, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Ewan McGregor And Eve Mavrakis
Half of his earnings over the past 20 years plus $432,000 per year spousal support and $180,000 per year child support.
Though the exact number is unknown, the estimate lands him somewhere on the list between the people who paid $30 and $45 million for their respective divorces. Plus, of course, he had to endure that public roasting after he thanked both his soon-to-be ex-wife and his mistress in the same award acceptance speech.
Michael Douglas And Diandra Douglas
$45 million ($90 million adjusted)
Douglas was 32 in 1977 when he married his first wife Diandra, then 19. They were married until 1995.
Phil Collins And Oriane Cevey
$45.7 million ($65 million adjusted)
Take a look at me now—I’m out $45.7 million. After seven years of marriage, this payout garnered Collins the dubious title of the the largest settlement in a British celebrity divorce…to be beat only a year or so later by the next entry in this list.
Raph_PH, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Reba McEntire And Narvel Blackstock
$47.5 million
A single mom who works too hard, who loves her kids and never stops, with gentle hands and the heart of a fighter—she’s a survivor! McEntire not only has country hits under her belt but also her namesake hit sitcom, and it’s all made her a pretty penny over the years. As a result, she had to fork over $47.5 million in her divorce from Narvel Blackstock after 26 years.
More recently, McEntire has dated TV actor Rex Linn, best known for playing Sgt Tripp on CSI: Miami.
Paul McCartney And Heather Mills
$48.6 million ($69 million)
Though Paul McCartney and Heather Mills certain projected the image of a happy couple, it all fell apart in 2006, and Mills soon found a home in the tabloids, slinging mud at her soon-to-be-ex and his children from his first marriage. It ended with a $48.6 million settlement and Mills pouring a jug of water on McCartney’s lawyer’s head.
Though Mills pledged to donate a “large portion” of the settlement, the charity she promised to give it to never saw a penny.
Everett Collection, Shutterstock
James Cameron And Linda Hamilton
$50 million ($91 million adjusted)
Though Linda Hamilton first met James Cameron while making The Terminator (1984), the two only became romantically involved in the early 1990s, after his divorce from Kathryn Bigelow. They married in 1997, but quickly divorced two years later amid rumors that Cameron had an affair with Titanic cast member Suzy Amis. He paid Hamilton a cool $50 million, and married Amis a year later.
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Kenny Rogers And Marianne Rogers
$60 million ($127 million adjusted)
Rogers was actually married five times in his life, with his marriage to actress Marianne Gordon lasting from 1977 to 1993
Madonna And Guy Ritchie
$76 to $92 million ($108 to $130 million adjusted)
This celeb supercouple married four months after the birth of the son Rocco, and lasted nearly 8 years before Ritchie walked away with a generous settlement. Of course, we’re unsure if that settlement was adjusted for whatever money they both lost on the Ritchie-directed, Madonna-starring flop Swept Away (2002).
Chris Martin And Gwyneth Paltrow
$100 million ($129 million adjusted)
The uncoupling between the musician and the actress/GOOP founder was conscious—and also incredibly expensive.
Steven Spielberg And Amy Irving
$100 million ($246 million adjusted)
Though younger readers may not remember, this 1989 divorce was as big a blockbuster in the news as any of Spielberg’s films. The pair had dated briefly in the 70s before reuniting and marrying in 1985.
They lasted just four years, and when Irving walked away with $100 million, it was one of the most expensive divorces of the era—made all the more shocking that the couple had actually signed a pre-nup. The problem? They’d written it on a napkin, and the judge vacated it in Irving’s favor.
Dr Dre And Nicole Young
$100 million
Dre and Young made it through 24 years of marriage before splitting—and he paid her $100 million in total, which a judge ordered him to split into two separate transactions, a year apart. Is that a tax hack or something?
Greg Norman And Laura Andrassy
$103 million ($151 million adjusted)
The professional golfer was married to Andrassy for some 25 years before their (expensive) divorce. He went on to briefly marry tennis legend Chris Evert, but they split after 15 months.
Dan Perry, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Harrison Ford And Melissa Mathison
$118 million ($190 million adjusted)
Ford and Mathison were together from 1983 to 2004—a long time in Hollywood years—and Mathison got $118 million. Ford went on to marry Calista Flockhart, and Mathison sadly passed on from cancer in 2015.
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Garth Brooks And Sandy Mahl
$125 million
The country singer and his wife of 15 years divorced in 2001, after a very profitable decade for Brooks. As a result, she ended up with $125 million of his fortune.
Neil Diamond And Marcia Murphey
$150 million ($300 million adjusted)
Every time you hear “Sweet Caroline” on the radio or in an ad, think of Neil Diamond, who had to fork over $150 million of his hard-earned royalties to his ex in 1991 after they split.
Michael Jordan And Juanita
$168 million ($254 million adjusted)
The all-star athlete was married to his first wife Juanita for 16 or 17 years before they split. Their 2006 settlement for $168 million was the largest celebrity divorce settlement on public record at the time.
Adele And Simon Konecki
$171 million
Though the details of the singer’s drawn out divorce from her first husband were kept private as part of the settlement, we do know that the pair had to divide a hefty $171 million fortune.
Kristopher Harris, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Arnold Schwarzenegger And Maria Shriver
$250 to $375 million
After learning that Schwarzenegger had a secret child with their housekeeper, Shriver filed for divorce. Without a prenup, Schwarzenegger was forced to pay a very, very generous settlement.
Governo do Estado de São Paulo, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Mel Gibson And Robyn Moore Gibson
$425 million ($642 million adjusted)
When Gibson’s 31-year marriage to Robyn Moore Gibson ended, the approximately $425 million divorce settlement—half his fortune—shocked fans and became a running joke for late-night hosts who proselytized about the importance of pre-nup agreements. At the time, it was the most expensive Hollywood divorce.
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Tiger Woods And Elin Nordegren
$710 million ($992 million adjusted)
Who could forget that late night 9-1-1 call and the media frenzy that followed Nordegren’s discovery of Woods’ infidelity? Though Woods lost millions in endorsement deals, he also ended up losing $710 million in the subsequent divorce.
Steve Wynn And Elaine
$1 billion
Las Vegas wouldn’t be what it is today without Steve Wynn, a prolific real estate developer who even has a namesake hotel and casino on the Strip. He married Elaine the same year he graduated university—and the same year his father passed on, leaving him with $350K in gambling debts. She co-founded the Mirage and Wynn Resorts with him, and they divorced twice—in 1986, remarrying in 1991, and then splitting again in 2010.
Bernie Ecclestone And Slavica
$1 to $1.5 billion
You may not know the name off the top of your head, but you likely know who he is—Ecclestone was the chief executive of Formula One until 2017. He was married to Croatian model Slavica Radic from 1985-2009, and she ended up with between $1 and $1.5 billion.
Rupert Murdoch And Anna Torv
$1.7 billion
The media magnate—rumored to be the one of the inspirations for Logan Roy in Succession—was married to Anna Torv for 32 years before their divorce, which reportedly cost him $1.7 billion.
Ron Galella, Ltd., Getty Images
Rupert Murdoch And Jerry Hall
Unknown
That’s right, these two crazy kids previously featured on this list got together after their other high profile divorces and gave it a shot—until they split in 2022 and six years of marriage. Though it’s likely that Murdoch learned his lesson and had an airtight pre-nup, Hall still walked away with a reported few million pounds for her troubles.
Kim Kardashian And Kanye West
Split $2.1 billion plus $200,00 monthly child support.
What can we say about this pair that hasn’t already been said? They each signed a prenup before their 2014 wedding that kept their property largely separate. Their divorce involved legal squabbles over their combined $2.1 billion net worth, which included lavish properties and a supercar collection.
Alec And Jocelyn Wildenstein
$3.8 billion ($7 billion adjusted) plus $100 million every year for 13 years
Jocelyn Wildenstein isn’t known for her singing, acting, or modeling—she’s really just known for her extensive plastic surgery. Often nicknamed the “Catwoman,” she married billionaire art dealer Alec Wildenstein in 1978.
After walking in on him with a 21-year-old in 1999, she began divorce proceedings, and eventually got an impressive payout—with the caveat that the judge decreed she could not use her alimony for plastic surgery.
Jeff Bezos And MacKenzie Scott
$38.3 billion in Amazon stock
Bezos was married to Scott for 25 years—they met before he even founded Amazon! When all was said and done, she ended up with a huge sum in the form of Amazon stock. Luckily, Scott is a generous philanthropist. As of March 2024, she’s donated more than $17.2 billion.
picture alliance, Getty Images
Bill Gates And Melinda Gates
Between $6 and $76 billion
In what is likely the most expensive divorce ever, the Microsoft founder paid his ex a hefty sum. Though different amounts have been reported, many suspect it’s $76 billion, which is about half of Gates’ net worth of approximately $152 billion. Like Scott, Melinda Gates, nee French, is a prolific philanthropist. She recently announced she’d be giving away $1 billion over the next two years to women’s causes and organizations promoting gender equity.
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