Arnold Schwarzenegger cracked an uncomfortable joke about ex-wife Maria Shriver taking his money during their lengthy divorce.
The “Terminator” star made the quip while honoring Chris Wallace at the journalist’s Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony Thursday.
“I know a lot about journalists. I’ve been interviewed — you can imagine, in my lifetime — by thousands and thousands of journalists,” the former California governor shared. “But not only that, I was also married to a journalist.”
Arnold Schwarzenegger joked about paying half of his earnings to his ex-wife Maria Shriver. Getty Images
The couple was married in 1986. Getty Images
They announced their separation in 2011. Getty Images
Schwarzenegger then quipped, “The only difference between Chris and Maria is that Chris has never taken half my money.”
The actor and Shriver, who was a longtime ABC reporter, were married for nearly 25 years and share four children: Katherine, 35, Christina, 34, Patrick, 32, and Christopher, 27.
The couple, who married in 1986, separated in 2011 amid salacious reports about Schwarzenegger’s infidelity.
Schwarzenegger, who shares four children with Shriver, admitted to fathering a child with the family housekeeper. Getty Images
Their divorce was finalized in 2021. Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images
The “Total Recall” star later admitted to fathering a son, Joseph Baena, with the family’s former housekeeper, Mildred “Patty” Baena.
Joseph was born within days of his half-brother, Christopher.
Schwarzenegger and Shriver’s divorce was finalized in December 2021, a decade after their separation.
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Schwarzengger later called the affair his “failure.” Getty Images
Schwarzenegger’s lovechild was born days after his fourth child with Shriver. FilmMagic
He later owned up to his shortcomings.
“It was my f–k up. It was my failure,” he admitted in a 2023 interview before stressing that he’s still “good friends” with Shriver and is “very proud of the way we raised our kids.”
“Even though we had this drama,” he explained, “we did Easter together, Mother’s Day together, the Christmases together, all birthdays — everything together.”
The former politician made the remarks during a ceremony on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Chris Wallace. Getty Images
Schwarzenegger called Wallace a “fantastic journalist.” REUTERS
He added, “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.”
Shriver wrote about the affair’s aftermath in her book of poetry, “I Am Maria.”
“It broke my heart, it broke my spirit, it broke what was left of me,” she wrote. “Honestly, it was brutal and I was terrified.”