10 Most Expensive Divorces
Fresh off Bill and Melinda Gates’ shocking divorce, it’s time to revisit some of the most high-profile divorces that have occurred in recent memory. Although some of these divorces have been settled without any hitches, some have made it to international headlines for all the wrong reasons. Essentially, the more assets and funds the couple has, the costlier it becomes if they file for a separation. Here are 10 of the most expensive divorces ever:
1. Bill Gates and Melinda French - $130 Billion
Even if it’s only the most recent high-profile divorce, the cost of Bill and Melinda Gates’ separation is the most expensive in history expected to cost around an estimated $130 billion. Although the two have pledged to continue running the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation together, many are convinced that Melinda will eventually break away and launch her own philanthropic foundation.
The two have multiple joint assets spread across the United States, including properties in Washington, California, Florida, Wyoming, and Massachusetts as well as art and book collection and a fleet of luxury cars. They also run the foundation from their $125 million family home in Seattle. Reports have surfaced that no prenup was in place before their wedding in 1994, creating a possible conflict on which party will take control of which property, particularly the $125 million where the foundation is based from.
Founded by the couple in 2000 after Bill stepped down as Microsoft CEO, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is the largest private charitable organization in the world holding assets of over $51 billion. Bill Gates is currently ranked fifth in the world’s richest people list but his ranking is expected to slide to as low as #17 once the settlement is finalized; not exactly an alarming drop since his earnings are still by the billions.
2. Jeff Bezos and MacKenzie Scott - $35 Billion
When the world’s richest man and the world’s third-richest woman filed for divorce in 2019, it only cemented the fact that money can’t truly buy everything. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his split from MacKenzie Scott cost $35 billion and was tagged as the most expensive divorce in history before Gates divorce recently took over. The couple settled for a $35 billion divorce settlement with Scott retaining a 4 percent stake in Bezos’ company Amazon. The settlement also included Scott forfeiting all of her voting rights to her former husband.
Bezos founded Amazon in 1994 and has been instrumental in turning into the $1 trillion company it is known today. Although he made his fortune with Amazon, his path to becoming to world’s wealthiest person is also a result of investing in multiple organizations focusing on technology, research, and food retail.
Bezos, who holds a 10 percent stake at Amazon, announced that he is stepping down as CEO and will be transitioning as the executive chair of the company’s board before the end of 2021. After briefly losing the world’s richest spot to Tesla CEO and SpaceX founder Elon Musk, Bezos regained the title after obtaining a net worth of $196 billion.
3. Alec Wildenstein and Jocelyn Perisset - $3.8 Billion
One of the famous divorces in history revolves around Alec Wildenstein and Jocelyn Perisset’s breakup in 1999 resulting in a settlement worth $3.8 billion. Wildenstein was an art dealer and had inherited an art business empire worth $10 billion upon his father’s death. He was introduced to Perisset during a social event and the two married in 1978. After Perisset filed for divorce, a nasty legal battle soon ensued with the socialite receiving $2.5 billion in a divorce settlement as well as $100 million each year for the succeeding 13 years.
Despite the large wealth Perisset accumulated, the Switzerland native’s lavish lifestyle would result in her losing all of it. She filed for bankruptcy in 2018 and is currently living off $900 a month on Social Security payments; a far cry when she was still married to Wildenstein, making headlines for spending $1 million a month including $5,000 on telephone bills.
4. Rupert Murdoch and Anna Maria Mann - $1.7 Billion
Rupert Murdoch’s split from Anna Maria Mann in 1999 was reported to cost an upward of $1 billion. Mann received $1.7 billion and an additional $110 million in cash from the settlement. The pair met while Mann was working in one of Murdoch’s publications The Daily Telegraph.
Murdoch is one of the world’s richest media moguls and is the founder and current executive chairman of American mass media and publishing giant News Corp. He is also the chairman of Fox Corporation (not included in the Walt Disney-21st Century Fox deal) in which his family owns a majority stake.
5. Bernie Ecclestone and Slavica Radic - $1.2 Billion
After 23 years of marriage, Croatian model Slavica Radic divorced British billionaire Bernie Ecclestone with the former walking away with a $1.2 billion settlement. Although Radic became a billion dollars richer, she is also paying Ecclestone around $100 million a year due to his former husband’s complex wealth structure.
Ecclestone is the former chief executive at Formula One Group, the company that manages Formula One and all of its commercial rights. He met Radic during the 1982 Italian Grand Prix and the two married three years later. Despite retiring from management and board duties, Ecclestone is still one of the wealthiest people in the United Kingdom having a net worth of $3.4 billion.
6. Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren - $750 Million
The most expensive divorce in sports goes to Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren’s $710 million split in 2010. The two married in 2004 but divorced six years after the popular golfer was involved in numerous cheating scandals. Woods soon acknowledged having affairs with multiple women and later announced that he was taking an indefinite leave from golf to fix his marriage. Unfortunately, no reconciliation occurred and the couple eventually filed for divorce with Nordegren receiving a $750 million divorce settlement.
Although the scandal took a huge hit on Woods’ image particularly in the loss of numerous sponsorship deals, he has slowly managed to repair the damage. He won his 5th Masters in 2019 which moved him 2nd all-time in Masters (5) and major championship (15) wins only behind Jack Nicklaus (6 Masters and 18 major championships).
7. Mel Gibson and Robyn Moore - $425 Million
When it comes to the most expensive Hollywood divorce to date, look no further than Mel Gibson’s split from former wife Robyn Moore for a staggering $425 million. They were married for nearly 30 years before Moore filed for a divorce in 2009. Although both never disclosed the reason for the divorce, it was widely speculated that Gibson’s highly-publicized affair with Russian pianist Oksana Grigorieva was a big factor in the breakup. The settlement resulted in Moore receiving half of Gibson’s $850 million fortune.
After the divorce, Gibson faced another legal battle after Grigorieva accused the former of domestic violence. She was awarded a $750,000 settlement as well as joint custody of their daughter Lucia. Gibson’s public image would be tarnished for many years before making a directorial comeback with the 2016 war epic “Hacksaw Ridge”. The film earned two Oscars as well as a Best Director nod for Gibson.
8. Michael Jordan and Juanita Vanoy - $168 Million
From one sporting legend to another, basketball hall of famer Michael Jordan also didn’t have a lasting marriage from his former spouse. Jordan and Juanita Vanoy filed for divorce in 2006, their second divorce after first separating in 2002. Unlike Woods and Nordegren’s messy separation, Jordan and Vanoy managed to keep everything under wraps with Vanoy eventually receiving a divorce settlement worth $168 million in 2007. The two married in 1989 four years after they were introduced by a mutual friend in Chicago.
Although the former couple’s marriage concluded without a major scandal, it was reported that Jordan did leave Vanoy for a while after he found out that he was the father of their first child Jeffrey. Jordan’s eldest child, who is also currently one of the heads of Jordan Brand’s digital innovation department, was born a few months before his parents married in 1989.
A majority of players, fans, and sports reporters consider Jordan as the greatest basketball player of all time, winning six championships and scoring 32,000 points (5th all-time) throughout his 15-year career.
9. Harrison Ford and Melissa Mathison - $118 Million
The actor behind Indiana Jones and Han Solo had been married twice before settling in with his current spouse Calisa Flockhart. His second marriage with the late screenwriter Melissa Mathison (best known for writing the screenplay for the classic science fiction film “E.T.”) lasted for 21 years with the celebrity divorce settlement costing an estimated $118 million. The settlement also stated that Mathison was entitled to a percentage of royalties from some of Ford’s films that were made during their marriage, including Indiana Jones and Star Wars.
The couple got married at a Santa Monica courthouse in 1983 and have two kids together. Ford’s third and current wife is former “Ally McBeal” star Calista Flockhart who had previously won a Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild award in her role as the titular character in the popular 90’s sitcom.
10. Song Joong-ki and Song Hye-kyo - $86.5 Million
Tagged as the biggest celebrity breakup in Asia, Song Joong-ki and Song Hye-kyo (with the couple also known as “Song-Song”) split in 2019 with both individuals also splitting $86.5 million worth of assets they had accumulated while still married. The two met while filming popular Korean sitcom “Descendants of the Sun” where both played significant roles. The romantic drama which ran for 16 episodes in 2016 is considered one of the most successful shows on Korean television.
Part of the settlement includes the ex-couple’s Itaewon mansion worth $8.6 million, Song Joong-ki’s villa worth $2.2 million, and Song Hye-kyo’s properties worth $17.8 billion. Although both were already A-list celebrities before tying the knot in 2017, Song Hye-kyo was previously listed to have a higher net worth than her former spouse.
Final Thoughts
In the absence of love, money plays the most important role for couples after they move on from their failed marriage. It is a fact that the costs of divorce are huge with costs multiplied exponentially for celebrities, business executives, and other high-profile personalities. But even with these settlements costing an upward of $80 million, it still hasn’t deterred these couples from pursuing a separation and taking it to the courts if necessary.
