Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver are finally divorced, for all intents and purposes anyway. After over ten years in court, the two are finally free to see other people. Here’s what happened.
A Quick Refresher
In 1977, Schwarzenegger was introduced to Shriver by Tom Brokaw. Nine years later the two wed at the Kennedy compound in Hyannis, Massachusetts. They share four children together, including Katherine Schwarzenegger. Shriver was even the first lady after Arnold became Governor of California.
After 25 years together, Shriver and Schwarzenegger separated in May 2011. A few weeks later, details emerged about Schwarzenegger’s affair with Mildred Patricia Baena. They had a love child, and suddenly a spotlight was thrust on Shriver like never before. She filed for divorce on July 1, 2011, citing “irreconcilable differences.”
What Took So Long?
The divorce got off to a glacial start immediately. In 2015, TMZ revealed Schwarzenegger was dragging his feet. He had no interest in splitting up, nor in dividing up their $400 million assets. The two did not have a prenup and considering his career and her family, there was a lot of money at stake. Others think Shriver may have had second thoughts as well.
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Perhaps the two just didn’t want to deal with the headaches of a divorce. Both have seen other people since 2011 and quickly decided to share custody.
Finally Ending Things
Even though it looked like this was settled in 2017, recent court documents prove that Schwarzenneger and Shriver are finally settling out of court. The two filed a declaration of disclosure, meaning they’ll be meeting with a private judge instead of a public one to finalize things. Since the case is out of the court system, it’s done in the eyes of California.
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Going to a private judge means these famous folks won’t have any more dirty laundry aired in public, but that doesn’t mean it’ll be over quickly. Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have gone the private route and that divorce is still raging on. Why Schwarzenneger and Shriver decided to finally go private is anyone’s guess, but ending things after a decade of court squabbles must feel good.
The two share a reason to be excited, for Katherine is pregnant with her second child. She and Chris Pratt get along very well with both Arnolda and Shriver. She went Christmas Tree shopping alongside the Guardians of the Galaxy star, while Arnold was a fan before Pratt became his son-in-law. 2022 should be a banner year for both Schwarzenegger and Shriver.