Who Is Kevin Costner's Wife, Christine Baumgartner?
"Yellowstone" star Kevin Costner has a lot to be thankful for. With seven children and a beautiful wife, the Hollywood A-lister is a proud family man both on- and off-camera.
The "Field of Dreams" icon wed his first wife, Cindy Silva, while attending California State University, Fullerton. Silva spent summers playing a princess at Disneyland, according to Prevention, and the young lovebirds both found their fairytale ending in 1978 after tying the knot. Silva and Costner had three children together and worked together on multiple films, including "Dances with Wolves," for which Costner won the Academy Award for both best director and best picture. However, the pair divorced after 16 years of marriage.
Kevin Costner went on to have another child with girlfriend Bridget Rooney before marrying model Christine Baumgartner in 2004. Who is Baumgartner — a woman 19 years Costner's junior — and why did she and Costner almost not get married? Keep scrolling to find out!
You may have seen the former model on TV
Kevin Costner's wife, Christine Baumgartner, is drop-dead gorgeous. It's not a surprise that she was working as a professional model when she met Costner back in the '80s, per Closer Weekly. Costner was still married to first wife Cindy Silva at the time, but sparks between the actor and model flew once he was a single man — in 1994, as previously mentioned, Costner and Silva separated — and the two reconnected in the late '90s.
In 2003, Costner told People about how they met again at a restaurant in 1998: "We exchanged numbers, and I told her that I would — did she mind if I called her in two weeks. I did not realize that was like an insult to a woman." Of course, things still worked out. After the couple made their relationship official, Baumgartner appeared on several talk shows. She also went on "Primetime" when she was engaged to Costner, as well as later made appearances in episodes of "Die Johannes B. Kerner," "Inside Edition," "E! Live from the Red Carpet," and "Entertainment Tonight," per IMDb.
Christine Baumgartner is also a handbag designer
Christine Baumgartner is not just the wife of a pretty famous actor, but she's been making a name for herself in fashion. With a business degree from California State University, Fullerton, Baumgartner is also a handbag designer for the line Cat Bag Couture.
According to The Denver Post, Baumgartner found herself in the world of design when she couldn't find a laptop bag that suited her. She shared, "I didn't start because I love handbags; I started because I was missing something. I use a computer quite a bit and travel a lot. I looked for a computer bag, and they functioned, but I didn't find anything that was right for me." With the help and motivation from her husband, Kevin Costner, the model took her sketches to the next level and launched her designer handbags in 2004.
With her laptop cases a hit, she was asked to make women's handbags. "Some of the girls I know would ask me to make a bag, so I started sketching styles for day and evening," Baumgartner stated, adding that she named her bags after "strong" women she knew. Her bags have also been seen in "Desperate Housewives"!
Kevin Costner was hesitant to have more children with her
It was not quite love at first sight for Christina Baumgartner and Kevin Costner. According to Prevention, the pair had met back in the '80s on a golf course, but they didn't give dating a shot until 1998, before briefly splitting in 2002 because Costner was not looking to have more children. "She said, 'I'm going to wait for you, but not long. When you come to your senses, come back to me,'" he told Parade in 2012. "... I woke up and thought, 'Am I going to lose a beautiful woman who is willing to be with me to my very last breath because I am afraid to say yes to a child?' That's all it took," Costner added, per Closer Weekly. "Sometimes you learn the thing you're most afraid of will save your life."
However, love conquers all, and Baumgartner and Costner later married at his Aspen, Colorado ranch in 2004. Today, they have three children together named Cayden, Hayes, and Grace. Costner thanked his family during his acceptance speech for the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 20th Annual Critics' Choice Movie Awards in 2015, calling his children "bigger than the movies."
The secret to Kevin Costner's marriage is saying 'sorry'
A marriage of over 10 years is rare in Hollywood. However, star-studded couples like Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban and Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson have proven that love can stand the test of time. As of this writing in 2022, actor Kevin Costner and his second wife, Christine Baumgartner, have been happily married for 18 years and are among the rarity of successful Hollywood marriages.
Celebrity couples who have been together for quite some time are often asked what makes their marriage so successful. Well, for Costner and Baumgartner it is being able to man up and apologize. The "Yellowstone" actor told Parade in 2012, "Maybe it's the ability to say you're sorry. I know that sounds so simple. If you're willing to tell somebody that you love them, are you also willing to say you're sorry? You need to, even when you think you're right."
Costner and Baumgartner have successfully kept a low profile, which can also be a reason why their marriage has worked so well. The handbag designer has been seen hand in hand with the actor on red carpet events, and when asked at the 2015 Screen Actors Guild Awards what is the best part of being with Costner, Baumgartner coyly replied, "I can't tell you the best part."
Their marriage has gotten stronger during the pandemic
The coronavirus deeply impacted people across the world, and quarantining appeared to take a hit on couples, especially for celebrities — considering we saw bombshell breakups from Kristin Cavallari and Jay Cutler to Jason Sudeikis and Olivia Wilde, to name a couple. However, being stuck at home has been beneficial to some A-list pairings, including Kevin Costner and his wife, Christine Baumgartner.
In a 2020 interview with People, the actor shared how quarantining with his wife and their three children had not weakened their marriage one bit. "Our partnership has really come into focus about what we do for each other and how we deal with our family," Costner shared, adding, "Our house is like a river: You've just got to get into the flow of it. And whatever you thought it was going to be, maybe it still can, but it's going to have to work with what the day brings."
During quarantine, Costner also shared how breakfast was "the one meal I can handle," while Baumgartner was in charge of homeschooling their kids. "I'm computer illiterate. I'm so thankful for Christine as a partner. Because they would look at me ... and I wouldn't be that guy. And I want to be that guy for the people that love me."
Christine Baumgartner is literally a great catch
Kevin Costner has a lot to brag about when it comes to wife No. 2 Christine Baumgartner. Not only is she beautiful, but she can catch a fish with her bare hands! Seriously, what other star can say that about their wife?
Costner joined Jimmy Kimmel on his late-night show in 2019, where he shared a video of Baumgartner casually dipping her hand in a lake and snatching a fish before quickly tossing it back in the water toward their children. The "Yellowstone" actor was quite impressed and told Kimmel, "We're just hanging out, and I saw her walking along the lake. She was looking at the water, and I was kind of unsure of what she was doing. But she was so meticulous about what she was doing." Costner then jokingly added with a grin, "I took her right home. Took her back up to our room. I was very ... I was thrilled with it. And I talked to her about her behavior."
The Costner-Baumgartners sure do love the outdoors. After the couple said their vows at their stunning outdoor Colorado wedding, the actor asked his wife to hop into a canoe with him. The two were seen on Costner's lake, with the star paddling away as Baumgartner sat in the canoe in her Monique Lhuillier wedding dress and all, per Extra.