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Hollywood’s Messiest Divorces: Kelly Clarkson and More Stars at War With Their Ex
It’s been almost four years since Kelly Clarkson pulled the plug on her marriage to her former manager, Brandon Blackstock, and two since they settled their divorce. But their legal battles continue to rage on.
“While Kelly has moved on emotionally from Brandon, she has no problem being tied up with him in court if it concerns her business and career,” a source exclusively tells Life & Style. “She doesn’t disparage him in front of the kids, and she’s cordial and civil, but when it comes to the law and her money, she won’t be bulldozed.”
First, they fought over custody of kids River Rose, 9, and Remington, 8. Then came a property battle. The singer and talk show host, 42, came out on top, securing full custody and 95 percent ownership of her $17.8M Montana ranch — though she was ordered to pay her ex a $1.3M lump sum plus $115,000 in monthly spousal support until January 2024.
Now she’s suing, demanding he pay her the more than $2.6M a California labor commissioner ruled she’s owed in November — repayments for commissions Brandon, 47, and his former management firm took while acting as Kelly’s “unlicensed talent agents.” (He’s denied “each and every allegation” in her March lawsuit.) “Their marriage was full of twisted lies,” claims the source. “She just wants what’s hers.”
Relocating to NYC in 2023 “gave Kelly a new beginning,” adds the source, who says “a core group of friends Kelly’s known for 30 years have been her rock.” Though she insisted last fall that “I love being single,” she’s also admitted she’d “love to fall in love” again. “Everyone is eager to set her up,” says the source, “and she does go out to meet people, but there hasn’t been anything very serious — yet.”
Elizabeth Chambers and Armie Hammer
They were supposed to be forging an idyllic life in the Caribbean.
Instead, it descended into a nightmare. In early 2020, Elizabeth Chambers and Armie Hammer relocated from LA to the Cayman Islands, where his family lived, with kids Harper, 9, and Ford, 7, to ride out the pandemic. “The ‘Cayman Curse’ is when a couple moves to the island together,” Elizabeth said on the new reality show Grand Cayman: Secrets in Paradise, “and then they end up separating or divorcing — and it tracks.”
The Bird Bakery owner, 41, ended their 10-year marriage, which had been deteriorating, that summer and soon initiated a divorce that became “riddled with scandal,” she said, as multiple women came forward to accuse the Call Me by Your Name actor, 37, of sexual misconduct, including cannibalistic fetishism. Armie has insisted their encounters (some of which occurred during his marriage) were all consensual.
Their public split was “absolute hell,” and she “wouldn’t wish it upon anyone,” Elizabeth recently said. But now, “a lot of the trauma…is behind me,” she added. “I’m very much at a place where I’m ready for a fresh start.”
Elizabeth even began dating in 2022, but, as she wrote on social media last year, “my main (and only) priority has been to mitigate trauma and protect my kids at all costs.”
Adds an insider: “As open as she’s been, when it comes to her family, Elizabeth says, ‘Nobody knows what we’ve been through.’ ”
Jenna Dewan and Channing Tatum
Six years after their separation and five years after a judge declared them legally single, Jenna Dewan and Channing Tatum still haven’t settled the financial side of their divorce. “It was contentious from the start,” says a source. “They fought about everything from posting their daughter [Everly, 10] on social media to custody to assets.”
The money fight is only getting worse, though. “They both want to move on,” notes the source, “but both also refuse to budge.”
At the crux of their problems is how to divide profits from the intellectual property associated with Magic Mike. While the 2012 film about male strippers Channing, 44, cocreated and its sequels grossed $346M globally, other “extremely lucrative” offshoots include live shows that reportedly sold $125M worth of tickets as of 2023. Jenna wants half the money, claiming in new court docs those were developed “during [the] marriage with community effort and marital funds.” However, Channing’s team insists much of what’s at stake is his separate property.
Jenna, 43, has also accused Channing of lying by omission, alleging he didn’t tell her about Magic Mike business opportunities and “collected 100 percent of the profits” after their separation without her knowledge. He again denies any wrongdoing. Now, the exes are preparing for a trial.
“Jenna seeks a fair financial resolution to her divorce,” her rep, Jeffrey Chassen, tells Life & Style. “This resolution is simply what she is legally due by law.”
Indeed, though Jenna’s been happily engaged to Tony Award winner Steve Kazee, 48, since 2020 and is now expecting their second child (their son, Callum, is 4), “she’s not backing down,” says a source. “Jenna would love to get this resolved before she walks down the aisle again.”
