Arnold Schwarzenegger has revealed he still loves his 67-year-old ex-wife Maria Shriver but doesn’t miss being married to her in a candid new chat.
The 75-year-old actor and politician reflected on his breakup from Shriver after 25 years of marriage during a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter.
Prior to splitting in 2011, the pair welcomed four children, who are now adults: Katherine, 33, Christina, 31, Patrick, 29, and Christopher, 25.
Shortly before their divorce, Schwarzenegger publicly revealed that he fathered a son, Joseph Bena, now 25 – with his family’s housekeeper, Mildred Baena.
Their divorce was finalized in 2021 and the pair have since forged a strong co-parenting relationship for the sake of their four children.
Asked if he missed being married, the Hollywood legend said: ‘No. [The divorce] was very, very difficult in the beginning. Eventually, you move on. I have a wonderful girlfriend, [physical therapist] Heather Milligan, who is very successful. I’m really proud of her, and I love her.
‘Expressing his enduring admiration for his former wife of 25 years, he added: ‘At the same time, I love my wife. She and I are really good friends and very close, and we are very proud of the way we raised our kids.
‘Even though we had this drama, we did Easter together, Mother’s Day together, the Christmases together, all birthdays — everything together.
‘If there’s Oscars for how to handle divorce, Maria and I should get it for having the least amount of impact on the kids. The sweetness and kindness you see in them, that’s from my wife. The discipline and work ethic is from me.’
The star also revealed his plans to ‘stay on this side of the grass’ and ‘live forever’ saying he works out every day alongside his busy acting career, and has no plans to retire.
Shriver and Schwarzenegger tied the knot in 1986, nearly nine years after they first met. They separated in 2011 and finalized their divorce in 2021.
Joseph Baena was born on October 2, 1997, only a few days after Shriver gave birth to the couple’s fourth child, Christopher.
The couple did not have a prenup, but according to TMZ at the time, ‘there was never any real custody beef’, and ‘they both quickly agreed on joint custody.’
They had an estimated $400 million at the time of their separation.
