Celebs Who Didn't Get Prenups — Which Ended Up Costing Them Big

Most of the time, when two people fall in love and get married, they don't have a prenuptial agreement ready to go. This is because, for the vast majority of marriages, there isn't a wealth disparity between those involved. Of course, there's also the underlying fact that some take offense to being asked about a prenup, so for most people, they're uncommon.

This is less true for celebrities, who often have a net worth measured in the millions. When there's that kind of money and assets on the line, it's usually in everyone's best interests to protect themselves. After all, celebrities are people just like everyone else, and like many marriages, life can get in the way and muck it all up. When that happens in a celebrity marriage where there is a prenup, everyone can go their separate ways without financially ruining one another.

When they don't have a prenup, it can become very expensive. In some states, not having a prenup means dividing everything 50/50, and for folks with tens of millions on the line, things can get nasty. Each of these celebrity marriages ended through divorce, and nobody involved had a prenup to protect themselves.

Ashton Kutcher became famous working on "That '70s Show" and "Dude, Where's My Car?" He continued landing increasingly high-profile gigs and was the first person to score a million followers on X, formerly known as Twitter. Kutcher has certainly made a life for himself in the public eye, and in 2005, he married Demi Moore, who had her own impressive career.

The couple remained together until their divorce was finalized in 2013, and without a prenup between them, things got a bit contentious. While spousal support wasn't on the table, given their respective incomes and net worths, Moore asked for it. There was one aspect of Kutcher's finances that put him above his ex-wife. Kutcher is a venture capitalist with stakes in numerous tech companies, which made him über-wealthy.

After nearly a year, they finalized their divorce, which was contentious because Moore believed Kutcher hid some of his tech investments from her. The terms of their divorce settlement are private, but TMZ reported that Kutcher was more generous than necessary, and both parties were satisfied. It's likely Moore walked away with several million, but we may never know for sure.

Christina Hall found fame and fortune flipping houses with her first husband on HGTV's "Flip or Flop." Hall divorced her first, second, and third husband, Josh Hall. Her marriage to Josh began and ended without a prenup, and seeing as she's the bigger earner in the marriage and California is a 50/50 divorce state, the divorce isn't cheap.

The divorce has also been pretty nasty, with accusations flying between the two. Christina accused Josh of stealing $35,000 from her account, and a claim was made that she offered a seven-figure settlement, which he refused. Because they didn't have a prenup and due to California's rules regarding marital assets, the divorce will likely end up costing Christina considerably.

Josh is technically allowed to claim half the rights to Christina's TV shows. On top of that, any property they purchased together is up for grabs as well. Christina is worth around $25 million, so there's a good chance Josh will be able to walk away with anything from a lump-sum settlement to spousal support and additional money, though the divorce has yet to be finalized as of mid-2024.

Johnny Depp first met Amber Heard on the set of 2011's "The Rum Diary," and they began dating a few years later. They married in February 2015 without a prenup, which was only one of their problems. Heard filed for divorce around 15 months into the marriage, and the divorce was nasty, to say the least. Much of the couple's dirty laundry was aired for the world to see.

Both parties laid claims of domestic abuse against the other, and Heard even filed for a restraining order. They reached a settlement in August 2016, ending their divorce while beginning the public fight that ultimately saw Heard flee the country to relocate to Spain. Heard won a $7 million settlement from Depp in the divorce but penned an op-ed accusing Depp of domestic violence.

Depp lost a libel case in the U.K. but filed a defamation case in the States against Heard. That trial was put on display for the public to see accusations of everything from violence to marital bed defecation — it wasn't pretty. In the end, Depp won a $10.3 million judgment, while Heard won $2 million, and left the country to permanently relocate to Spain.

Jessica Simpson was at the height of her career when she married Nick Lachey. The couple starred in "Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica," and they seemed like they had marital staying power. Simpson's father urged her not to sign a prenup because Lachey was worth more than her at the time. Unfortunately for Simpson, her financial situation changed dramatically.

Simpson began appearing in movies and increased her net worth beyond Lachey's. The couple separated and finalized their divorce in June 2006. The nature of their settlement remained private, but it all came out in 2015 when Simpson was asked what her biggest money mistake was during an interview on CNBC. Simpson said, "For some reason, I thought of my first marriage" (via the Mirror).

Soon after saying that, it was revealed that Simpson paid Lachey $12 million to finalize their divorce, and Lachey wasn't pleased that information got out to the public. Simpson's father, Joe, was there advising her again during the divorce. In her memoir, Simpson explains that her dad told her to pay Lachey whatever he wanted. It all worked out for Simpson, whose fashion line is valued at $1 billion.

Jennifer Lopez filed for divorce from Ben Affleck in August 2024 (no prenup), which makes that her fourth divorce. She was first married to Ojani Noa in 1997 before marrying Cris Judd in 2001. When they married, Lopez didn't sign a prenup, which came back to bite her because that was around the time Lopez was blowing up in popularity.

Before long, Lopez was worth millions, but in 2003, she and Judd divorced after only eight months of marriage. At the time, Lopez was worth around $78.6 million, so she had a lot to lose in the divorce. Lopez was the one who filed for divorce, and while negotiating the settlement, Lopez's attorneys were adamant about Judd remaining quiet on the details of their relationship.

This resulted in a settlement of $13.1 million, or around $52,000, for every day they were married. The terms of the settlement meant that Judd wouldn't receive all of the money at once. Instead, he would receive it over an unspecified period of time as long as he remained quiet about the nature of their relationship and the terms of the divorce.

John Cleese has been married four times and divorced three times, and despite his track record, he's not into prenups. Cleese believes they aren't romantic, but he ultimately signed one with his fourth wife, Jennifer Wade. Unfortunately for Cleese, his costliest divorce came when he and his third wife, Alyce Eichelberger, called it quits.

The couple married in 1992 and divorced in 2008, and it wasn't cheap for Cleese. In the end, Cleese paid Eichelberger around $20 million over the course of his alimony payments and additional settlement cash. Cleese would likely have retired had it not been for the nature of his alimony payments, and he's said he's quite poor as a result.

In 2008, Cleese launched what he cheekily called his "Alimony Tour," a one-man show that had him touring all over the place to make additional money beyond his royalty payments. In the end, Cleese had to sell four properties and most of his assets to pay Eichelberger the amount he owed in their divorce settlement. It's unclear if Cleese had prenups in his first two marriages, though his divorce from Eichelberger appears to be the costliest.

Paul McCartney has been married three times, first to Linda Eastman, who died in 1998, and then to Heather Mills in 2002. That marriage continued for six years before things fizzled out, and McCartney and Mills had a bitter divorce. McCartney's net worth is considerable, so a lot of money was on the line.

During the divorce proceedings, Mills sought $250 million from McCartney, who she believed was worth around $1.6 billion at the time. A judge found that McCartney's assets were considerably lower at only $800 million. As a result, McCartney was ordered to pay Mills $48.7 million to settle the divorce. On top of that, McCartney also had to pay $70,000 a year in alimony and child support for the couple's daughter.

McCartney had to shell out a lot of money to end things with Mills, but it wasn't too terrible for the singer. Around the time the divorce was finalized, McCartney landed a $400 million deal with Apple and iTunes to release the Beatles' discography. These days, McCartney is married to Nancy Shevell, and according to Celebrity Net Worth, he's worth $1.2 billion.

Kelsey Grammer has been married four times throughout his life, and three of them didn't end particularly well. His first marriage to Doreen Alderman ended in divorce, while his second to Leigh-Anne Csuhany ended in an annulment. Grammar married Kayte Walsh in 2011, and that relationship is very different from the one he had with his third wife, "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" star, Camille Grammer (née Donatacci).

The couple married in 1997 and remained together until their divorce in 2011. Kelsey didn't have a prenup, and he was worth around $60 million at the time of their divorce. Without a prenup between them, Kelsey's entire fortune was up for grabs, including their collective assets and cash.

The divorce was finalized in 2012, and Camille walked away with a 50% split, amounting to $30 million in money and assets. Kelsey has spoken out against his ex-wife over the years, while Camille has defended her actions. According to Camille, she put in a lot of work managing their finances and helping to save money instead of blowing it, and she felt she deserved everything she got in the divorce.

Madonna has had two high-profile marriages in her life, first to Sean Penn and then to Guy Ritchie. Madonna and Ritchie married in 2000, and they remained together for several years. During their marriage, they worked together on the poorly received "Swept Away" and seemingly were doing great. Unfortunately, the marriage resulted in divorce without a prenup.

Madonna filed for divorce, citing "unreasonable behavior" as her reason for terminating the marriage. They received a preliminary expedited divorce in a London court, and the settlement amount was relatively high. Both Madonna and Ritchie are wealthy, though Madonna holds considerably more money and assets than her ex-husband, so when it came time for one party to pay and the other to receive, Madonna was required to pay a substantial sum.

Madonna's significant net worth certainly influenced the settlement as the divorce settled for between $76 and $92 million. This amount included the value of the couple's country home in England as well as a pub they owned in London. While the settlement amount was considerably high, given Madonna's total net worth of about $850 million, it could have been even higher. 

Michael Jordan has made a lot of money over the years thanks to his NBA contracts and endorsement deals. Years after his retirement, Air Jordans remain one of the most popular shoes on the market. That endorsement deal and others made him incredibly wealthy, and when his first marriage to Juanita Vanoy came to an end in 2006, a sizable chunk of it was at risk.

Jordan and Vanoy had been married for 17 years, and when it came time to divide their assets, there was a lot on the table. Despite saying that their marriage ended "mutually and amicably," Jordan had to fork over a ton of cash. In one of the largest divorce settlements at the time, Jordan was forced to hand over a whopping $168 million to Vanoy to settle their divorce.

He paid nearly $170 million in the settlement, but he was able to retain shared custody of their three children and their seven-acre property outside Chicago, Illinois. Lacking a prenup must have been on Jordan's mind when he married Yvette Prieto as the couple did sign one, which spells out precisely how much Prieto would receive should they divorce.

Arnold Schwarzenegger married Maria Shriver in 1986, and they remained a couple for decades. Unfortunately, a cheating scandal, including the revelation that Schwarzenegger fathered a child with the couple's housekeeper, resulted in an end to their 25-year marriage. Unlike most contentious divorces, which typically last a few years, the Schwarzenegger-Shriver divorce took nearly a decade to finalize.

Schwarzenegger initially filed paperwork without including spousal support or attorney's fees, but he fixed this in a subsequent filing. In the end, the divorce, which was initially filed in 2011, was settled in 2021. Both parties retained shared custody of their two youngest children, and Schwarzenegger kept the family's primary home.

Shriver relocated nearby to make the separation easier for the kids. In terms of money, the final amount of their settlement is unknown, though Shriver was entitled to half of Schwarzenegger's retirement money. Also, they divorced in California, so Shriver was entitled to 50% of Schwarzenegger's net worth, which was considerable. At the time, the couple was worth an estimated $400 million, so Shriver likely walked away with $200 million in cash and assets.

Over the years, Mel Gibson has courted controversy that's landed his name in plenty of headlines. Still, Gibson managed to overcome his many obstacles, including divorcing his first wife, Robyn Gibson, which was so expensive that the settlement set records. Mel married Robyn in 1980, which was shortly before he began moving into international superstar territory.

She remained with him as he made millions, and in 2011, the couple finalized their divorce. At the time, Mel was worth $850 million, and without a prenup to protect him, Robyn was entitled to half that amount. The couple was married for nearly 30 years, and throughout it all, Mel went from an unknown Aussie actor to one of the most bankable stars on the planet.

The impetus of the divorce was Mel's arrest for drunk driving in 2006. When the divorce was finalized, Robyn walked away with more than $400 million of Mel's earnings. Since the divorce, Mel has dated Oksana Grigorieva and Rosalind Ross, though he hasn't remarried. To date, the Gibson divorce remains the most expensive in Hollywood history, though it's nowhere near the biggest divorce outside of Hollywood.

Jeff Bezos first met MacKenzie Tuttle in 1992, and by the following year, they were married. One year later, the Bezos family moved to Seattle, where Jeff founded Amazon, so MacKenzie was with him from the beginning. Initially, Amazon didn't make any money, and it was a long time before the business was profitable. These days, the company is worth nearly $2 trillion, and Bezos is a multi-billionaire.

The couple announced their pending divorce in January 2019 after 25 years of marriage. Soon after, the National Enquirer revealed Bezos' infidelity with his now-fiancé, Lauren Sánchez. Ultimately, that didn't matter because Bezos didn't have a prenup with his ex-wife, and she was with him throughout his time leading up to and throughout Amazon's success.

As a result, MacKenzie was entitled to a massive payout, which she received in the form of a 4% stake in Amazon stock. That may not sound like a lot of money, but it amounted to 19.7 million shares worth an estimated $38.3 billion at the time. That makes the Bezos divorce one of the most expensive in history, though it isn't at the top of that list.

Bill Gates is one of the most famous businessmen working in the technology sector, and he's built up quite a massive fortune. As the owner of Microsoft, he took the company from the garage to become one of the leading tech firms in the industry. This made him exceptionally wealthy, and through it all, he had the support of his wife, Melinda.

The couple married in 1994, which was seven years after Melinda started working at Microsoft. They remained together for a total of 34 years as a couple, 27 of which were married years. At the time, the Wall Street Journal reported that the divorce might have been partly related to Bill's ties with Jeffrey Epstein, and they worked through their massive fortune to finalize the divorce in 2021.

The couple had no prenup and a combined fortune of $152 billion, so Bill had little option but to compensate Melinda handsomely. The 50/50 split of that fortune included a $124 million art collection, millions in properties, and much more. In the end, Melinda walked away from the marriage with a settlement of around $76 billion, though the final amount hasn't been confirmed to the public.