Celebrity The Most Expensive (and Explosive) Celebrity Divorces of All Time From eye-popping settlement amounts to headline-making adultery allegations, here are the celebrity divorces people couldn't stop talking about By Diana Pearl and Diane J. Cho Diane J. Cho Diane J. Cho was the Features Editor of PEOPLE Digital from 2019 to 2022. She worked at the brand for nearly four years covering news, features, human interest, evergreen, holiday gift guides and more. She launched the How I Parent and What It's Really Like to Be …. digital series and has interviewed several celebrities and influential leaders within the entertainment industry. Prior to joining PEOPLE, Diane worked at Bustle, VH1 and Complex. She received her bachelor's degree in Journalism from Rutgers University and her master's degree from Columbia Journalism School. People Editorial Guidelines Updated on May 4, 2023 12:08 PM Share Tweet Pin Email Trending Videos 01 of 20 Joe Don Rooney & Tiffany Fallon Rooney Tiffany Fallon and Joe Don Rooney. Steve Granitz/WireImage Joe Don Rooney and estranged wife Tiffany Fallon Rooney are entangled in contentious, years-long divorce proceedings. The former Rascal Flatts guitarist initially filed for divorce in January 2021, citing irreconcilable differences, but Tiffany responded in court in April of the same year accusing him of "inappropriate marital conduct." She alleged that Joe's "habitual drunkenness and abuse of narcotic drugs" was the reason they split, which he denied. Joe's former bandmates were also subpoenaed since Tiffany is asking for alimony in futuro should the Rascal Flatts — who retired in 2020 — tour again. Both parties also accused each other and admitted to cheating and they're each attempting to get the other's counter-complaint dismissed, with the costs taxed to the other. They're slated to meet for a divorce settlement conference on March 28, 2023. 02 of 20 Scooter Braun & Yael Cohen Yael Cohen and Scooter Braun. Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Record executive Scooter Braun filed for divorce from Yael Cohen in July 2021 after seven years of marriage, and the divorce was settled in September 2022. (And the divorce was really settled once Taylor Swift weighed in, with lyrics in "Karma" perceived by many to be about her nemesis Braun going through the split.) As part of their settlement, Braun was ordered to pay $20 million to his ex (in part as a spousal-support buyout), along with $60,000 per month in child support for their three young kids, Jagger Joseph, Levi Magnus and Hart Violet. Cohen also retained their $30 million Brentwood family home and kept her 2021 Land Rover Defender, plus some pieces of art. For his part, Braun retained the $65 million mansion he bought in L.A., their private jet and more than 100 pieces of classic art from artists such as Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Jasper Johns. 03 of 20 Kevin Costner & Cindy Silva Alex Berliner/BEI/Shutterstock Kevin Costner and his college sweetheart, Cindy Silva, had four children together during 18 years of marriage before his months away on film sets (and persistent rumors of infidelity) caused them to call it quits in 1994. The two did not have a prenup, and Silva reportedly got $80 million in settlement fees — a record-setting amount at the time. (Costner is currently going through his second divorce from wife Christine Baumgarten, but an airtight prenup means she will not be entitled to spousal support.) 04 of 20 Amber Heard & Johnny Depp Michael Kovac/Getty Images Heard filed for divorce from Depp in 2016 after 15 months of marriage. She was later awarded $7 million in the divorce settlement, which she donated to charity. But the process wasn't that clean-cut: the pair's court battles turned ugly, with Heard accusing Depp of domestic abuse and him doing the same of her. The former couple spent much of 2020 and 2021 in court for a libel case against U.K.'s The Sun, which labeled Depp a "wife-beater." Depp lost the suit and the appeal. In 2022, the pair returned to court for a defamation trial Depp brought against Heard over a 2018 op-ed she penned for the Washington Post. In it, she detailed discrimination she said she faced in the wake of her domestic abuse allegations against Depp, without naming him, to "ensure that women who come forward to talk about violence receive more support." Court proceedings for the case kicked off on April 11, 2022, with both actors making bombshell allegations of physical, emotional and mental abuse against each other. On June 1, a seven-person jury reached a verdict, deciding that Depp proved ex-wife Heard defamed him. The jury awarded Depp with $15 million in damages, though but Heard would only have to pay $10.35 million due to Virginia law cap on punitive damages (the judge reduced the amount). In her countersuit, Heard won one of the three defamation counts, and she was awarded $2 million in damages. Both parties appealed, but in December, Heard announced she'd settled with her ex. He donated the $1 million he received from her to charity. 05 of 20 Dr. Dre & Nicole Young Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic Producer Andre "Dr. Dre" Young agreed to pay his ex-wife Nicole Young $100 million in their divorce settlement, TMZ reported on Dec. 28, 2021. Dr. Dre planned to pay Young in two installments of $50 million as part of a property settlement agreement. Dr. Dre, who was worth $820 million at the time of the split, agreed to give "over more than one-fifth of his fortune and roughly half of his liquid assets" in the settlement, Rolling Stone reported. An attorney for Dr. Dre did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment. Young first filed for divorce from Dr. Dre in June 2020 after 24 years of marriage. The two share two adult children: son Truice and daughter Truly. 06 of 20 Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum & Princess Haya bint al-Hussein Chris Jackson/Getty According to CNN, in December 2021 the wealthy ruler of Dubai was ordered to pay a staggering $728 million to his ex, ending a years-long divorce battle that included allegations of affairs and threats. CNN reported that the money would "cover Princess Haya's security costs for the rest of her life, as well as ongoing costs for the couple's two children — Al Jalila Bint Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum and Sheikh Zayed Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum." 07 of 20 Bill & Melinda Gates Melinda and Bill Gates. Christopher Farber/Gates Archive The charitable pair announced their surprising divorce news on May 3, 2021, after 27 years of marriage. Court documents showed the two had a private separation agreement in place, but not a prenuptial agreement — and since they shared so much of their professional life together, untangling their assets could be complicated. They had several properties, including a 66,000-square foot waterfront mansion in Medina, Washington, worth $130.88 million, and a $43 million home in Del Mar, California. Individually, Forbes estimated that Bill is worth $130.5 billion. Though he stepped down as Microsoft chairman in 2014, he still owns 1.34 percent of the company and stakes in several other organizations, in addition to a handful of luxury planes and cars. Together, the former couple runs their namesake foundation, worth more than $40 billion. In a statement, the parents to three grown children said they "will continue our work together at the foundation" as they continue its mission of helping people around the world "lead healthy, productive lives." 08 of 20 Phil Collins & Orianne Bates Phil Collins and Orianne Collins in October 2017. Johnny Louis/WireImage When Collins and Bates (then Cevey) split in 2006 after seven years of marriage, their $46.68 million settlement was the biggest in British legal history at the time. The couple, who share two grown sons, found their way back to each other in 2016 — only to split again acrimoniously at the end of 2020. After the singer discovered that his ex-wife married Thomas Bates while still living in their $40 million Miami mansion, Collins served her an eviction notice. She contested the eviction by claiming that Collins "refused to shower" and had a "stench that became so pervasive that he became a hermit." (Collins' lawyers refuted the claims, described them as "immaterial and impertinent" to the case and categorized Bates' allegations as a means of "extortion.") Bates and her new husband moved out of the Miami home in mid-January 2021, but she then auctioned off Collins' records and awards while awaiting the judge's decision on her claim that she's entitled to half of the home's proceeds once it sells. In April 2022, a judge dismissed her claims and put an end to the long legal battle. 09 of 20 Shannon & David Beador Shannon and David Beador. Jerod Harris/WireImage Things were looking up for the Real Housewives of Orange County stars after David threw a surprise birthday and vow renewal ceremony for Shannon to celebrate their 16 years of marriage. The grand gesture was extra emotional considering the work the couple put into repairing their marriage after David's affair. Sadly, it wasn't enough to keep the duo together. Shannon filed for divorce from David in December 2017. David agreed to pay Shannon $1.4 million "to equalize the division of community property," according to court documents obtained by The Blast. The former couple, who are parents to Sophie and twins Stella and Adeline, agreed to joint legal and physical custody of their daughters and David was also paying Shannon $10,000 a month for spousal and child support. 10 of 20 Jeff & Mackenzie Bezos Jeff Bezos and MacKenzie Scott. Kevin Mazur/Getty Considering Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos was named the world's richest man in June 2018, his 2019 divorce from his wife of 25 years was expensive. Washington, where Bezos resides, is a community property state, which means that all assets and debts accrued during the marriage are considered owned equally by both spouses, unless there was a prenuptial agreement stating otherwise. However, the former couple worked out terms privately, and in April 2019 announced they'd finalized their divorce, with Mackenzie walking away with around $36 billion — making her one of the richest women in the world. (By June 2020, she had already given $1.7 billion away to charity, and continues making large donations to non-profits nationwide.) 11 of 20 Michael & Juanita Jordan Ron Galella, Ltd./WireImage The basketball superstar split from his wife of 17 years, Juanita, in 2006. It wasn't the first time the two had considered ending their marriage: Juanita filed for divorce in 2002. She ended up receiving one of the biggest payouts in history, $168 million. 12 of 20 Paul McCartney & Heather Mills Getty While not as pricey as the Jordan divorce, the Beatles star's split from now ex-wife Mills is still one of the most expensive celebrity divorces ever: McCartney forked over nearly $50 million, and later called his marriage to Mills his biggest regret of the decade. 13 of 20 Amy Irving & Steven Spielberg Getty Spielberg's first marriage, to actress Irving, lasted just four years, but produced one of the largest settlements in Hollywood, reported to be as much as $100 million. 14 of 20 Mel Gibson & Robyn Moore Mel Gibson and Robyn Moore. Ron Galella//WireImage Another of the largest Hollywood divorce payouts ever was between Gibson and Moore, who finalized their divorce after nearly 30 years of marriage in 2011 and split half of his $850 million fortune, with Moore's settlement totaling $425 million. 15 of 20 Guy Ritchie & Madonna Ferdaus Shamim/WireImage Their 2008 split was an intense one, and ultimately, it was reported that Madonna paid Ritchie between $76 million to $92 million. However, the drama between the two was only beginning: more recently, they were involved in a custody battle over their son, Rocco. 16 of 20 Kim Basinger & Alec Baldwin Kim Basinger and Alec Baldwin. Richard Corkery/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images Basinger and Baldwin's divorce drama lasted for four years, mostly due to a custody battle over their daughter, Ireland. Their split was also full of name-calling; some of the insults thrown out included "black widow" and "tin pot tyrant." Basinger also said that she dreamt about Baldwin's death. Things have gotten better since 2002, though: she told Net-A-Porter's The Edit that the two are "cool now." 17 of 20 Denise Richards & Charlie Sheen WireImage Another volatile celebrity divorce came in 2006 for Sheen and Richards. In court documents, Richards alleged that Charlie was abusive, slept with prostitutes during their marriage and tried to prevent his daughters from receiving common vaccinations. In released emails, Sheen called Richards a "sad jobless pig." They announced their plans to divorce just three years after they wed. 18 of 20 Ivana & Donald Trump Ron Galella, Ltd./WireImage The former president's divorce from his first wife, the late Ivana, wasn't just expensive, it was dramatic. Trump cheated on Ivana with his eventual second wife, Marla Maples, in a scandal that claimed many a headline. Famously, Maples confronted Ivana in Aspen, where she reportedly said, "I'm Marla and I love your husband. Do you?" according to an interview Ivana gave to Barbara Walters. Reportedly, Ivana said to Maples, "You bitch, leave my husband alone." The divorce soon followed, with an estimated settlement of $25 million. 19 of 20 Melissa Mathison & Harrison Ford Evan Agostini/Getty Another high-profile celebrity divorce was Ford's split with ex-wife Mathison in 2004. The divorce came after 21 years of marriage, and Mathison walked away with a large chunk of Ford's earnings after their settlement — $85 million, according to Forbes. 20 of 20 Princess Diana & Prince Charles Anwar Hussein/Getty They were seen around the world as a fairy tale come true, but the reality for Charles and Diana was far from it. Both were unfaithful throughout the marriage, and separated in 1992. There was talk of reconciliation, but after Diana's famed Panorama interview in 1995, it seemed the marriages was destined to go south. The royals officially divorced in 1996, just one year before Diana's death.