By Wonderwall.com Editors
8:14am PDT, Apr 16, 2019
Money can't buy you love — but it can buy you freedom from an unwanted marriage! Wonderwall.com is rounding up some of the most expensive celebrity divorces of all time, starting with Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt's dramatic split. Angelina filed for divorce in September 2016 but the proceedings have dragged on for years. (Though a judge delivered a bifurcated judgment — which made the exes legally single — in April 2019, the two continued to negotiate a financial settlement and permanent custody agreement.) Brad and Angelina are reportedly worth more than $550 million together, according to Forbes, though the bulk of that is his. It's unknown if they had a prenuptial agreement, but court papers have revealed that there's a bitter fight over money brewing: In August 2018, Angelina's attorneys claimed that Brad had failed to pay any "meaningful" child support for their six kids since their split, while his lawyer countered that Brad not only loaned Angie $8 million to purchase a new house but paid $1.3 million in bills for the benefit of her and their children at the time. Keep reading to see which other stars endured pricey splits…
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The most expensive divorce in history? That honor doesn't go to an actor or actress but to a studio head/business mogul and his author wife: Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and spouse MacKenzie, who were married for 25 years — and didn't have a prenuptial agreement. They announced their split in early 2019 — and reports of a cheating scandal quickly followed. MacKenzie, who was instrumental in the beginnings of Amazon when it was operating out of a garage, walked away with 25 percent of their stake in Amazon stock, which in turn gave her a new title — third wealthiest woman in the world. (At the time the divorce was finalized, her stake was worth around $35 billion.) But don't feel bad for Jeff — he's still worth $110 billion and holds the title of richest man in the world.
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Being Harrison Ford's wife wasn't Melissa Mathison's only claim to fame. Melissa, who died of neuroendocrine cancer in 2015, was also an accomplished screenwriter whose credits included "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial" and the Disney flick "The BFG."She still got a reported $118 million when her 21-year marriage to the "Star Wars" actor ended in 2004.
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When Mel Gibson and Robyn Moore finalized their divorce in 2011, the Oscar winner reportedly handed over half of his $850 million fortune to his former wife of 28 years.
When their divorce was settled in 1996, Princess Diana scored a $28 million payday from Prince Charles. "Princess Diana took every penny he had," the prince's former financial adviser told The Telegraph. "She took him to the cleaners."
Paul McCartney forked over $48.6 million to Heather Mills when they divorced in 2008.
Stars of the '80s and early '90s apparently weren't keen on prenups — and the people they married during their ascents to fame often benefited as a result. Cindy Silva reportedly scored $80 million from Kevin Costner when they divorced after 16 years of marriage in 1994.
Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren divorced in 2010 after it came to light that the golfer had cheated with multiple women. Although the media initially speculated that the blonde beauty could have walked away with almost $1 billion in the divorce, she ultimately reportedly banked just $100 million. "Just" $100 million.
Michael Jordan's wife of 27 years, Juanita, reportedly dribbled away with $168 million when they split.
After 23 years as husband and wife, Michael Douglas and Diandra Luker filed for divorce in 1995. He reportedly forked over $45 million in the breakup, but apparently that wasn't enough for Diandra, who claimed in 2010 that she was also entitled to profits from Michael's film "Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps" because it was a sequel to a film that he made during their marriage. Ultimately, a judge sided with the Oscar-winning actor.
Because Neil Diamond was married to second wife Marcia Murphey during the 25 most profitable years of his career, she walked away with a reported $150 million when they divorced in 1995.
Steven Spielberg and Amy Irving made headlines in 1989 when the presiding judge in their divorce decided that their prenup — allegedly written on a napkin — wasn't valid. The "Carrie" actress walked away from the marriage with an extra $100 million.
Kenny Rogers' divorce from his fourth wife, Marianne Gordon, proved that you've got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em — and know when to pay off an angry ex-wife. Kenny ultimately forked over an estimated $60 million to his former missus.
Diane Alexander banked an estimated $20 million when her eight-year marriage to Lionel Richie ended in 2004. Rich-ie, indeed!
Phil Collins clearly didn't learn his lesson about prenups. After handing over $34 million to his second wife, Jill Tavelman (pictured) — the mother of his actress daughter, Lily Collins — during their divorce settlement in the '90s, the hitmaker reportedly forked over $46.76 million to the third Mrs. Collins, Orianne Cevey, when they settled their divorce in 2008. Phil and Orianne reconciled in early 2016, and have even spoken about the possibility of remarrying.
Guy Ritchie reportedly "snatched" $90 million from Madonna when they settled their divorce in 2008.
Apparently love does cost a thing! Jennifer Lopez reportedly paid $14 million to dancer Cris Judd when their marriage came to an end in 2002.
Fans were shocked when Rene Elizondo filed to divorce Janet Jackson in 1991 — mainly because no one knew they were married in the first place! Reports say the superstar ended up handing over $10 million to hubby No. 2 in their divorce settlement.
Ted Danson handed over an estimated $30 million to his second wife, Casey Coates, when they divorced in 1993 after he had an affair with Whoopi Goldberg.
Greg Norman handed over an estimated $103 million when he and his first wife, Laura Andrassy, divorced. The professional golfer filed to end his marriage of 25 years in 2006 but battled with his former wife in court for nearly two years before reaching a settlement.
Due to a technical snafu, Jerry Hall banked much less than expected when she split from Mick Jagger in 1999. The Rolling Stones frontman successfully contested their 1991 wedding in Bali, claiming it was ceremonial and not legally binding. That meant the model-actress mother of (most) of his children got only $15 million. "Only."
Amber Heard and Johnny Depp had only been married 15 months when they split in 2016. Their divorce got ugly quickly — Amber accused Johnny of domestic abuse, and he responded with similar accusations and later sued her for defamation. Ultimately, Amber was awarded around $7 million. She made a point of donating the money to charity.
When she and Donald Trump divorced in the early '90s, Ivana Trump reportedly received an estimated $20 million, plus a $14 million estate and other allotments.
Linda Bollea filed to divorce her husband of 24 years, Terry "Hulk Hogan" Bollea, in 2007, but it wasn't until 2011 that they reached a settlement. Let's just say that while Hulk can hold his own in a wrestling ring, his wife proved a fiercer fighter in the courtroom: She walked away with $7.4 million.
Katie Holmes reportedly didn't ask for spousal support after she filed to divorce Tom Cruise in 2012, but she is believed to be collecting $400,000 a year in child support from the A-list actor for their daughter, Suri Cruise. If you do the math, that means the actress will have collected $4.8 million from her ex by the time Suri turns 18.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Rupert Murdoch's second wife, Anna, negotiated a $100 million settlement when she divorced the media mogul in 1999 — not the oft reported $1.7 billion sum. Still, $100 million is nothing to scoff at!
