Jocelyn Wildenstein, an 82-year-old socialite, has revealed that she is in dire financial straits, having endured eight years without any income after her ex-husband’s family terminated her $100 million annual divorce settlement, Your Content has learned.
In the 1990s, Jocelyn secured a monumental $2.5 billion divorce settlement, with an annual allocation of $100 million for subsequent years.
However, she now claims that her former husband’s family abruptly cut off all financial support almost a decade ago, leaving her struggling to make ends meet.
While filming a forthcoming HBO docuseries about her life, Jocelyn voiced her frustration: “I have a huge problem with my settlement. Since eight years, they have completely cut me off.”
She further disclosed that her ex-husband, Alec, had attributed their failed marriage to her extensive plastic surgeries, which had earned her the infamous moniker “Catwoman.“
The relationship between Jocelyn and Alec began in 1977 at his family’s Ol Jogi ranch in Kenya, where she was visiting on a safari trip.
They eventually married, had two children, and enjoyed a lavish lifestyle in their Manhattan penthouse, along with additional properties in the British Virgin Islands and Africa.
However, after two decades of marriage, Jocelyn decided to end the relationship due to her husband’s extramarital affairs, which had become increasingly blatant and public.
She revealed, “It was getting too obvious… It was young girls and going to the same restaurants we went to. It was no discretion, nothing.”
During the acrimonious divorce proceedings, Jocelyn claimed that Alec resorted to planting stories about her plastic surgeries in an attempt to gain the upper hand.
Allegedly, he even hired a publicist and paid a plastic surgeon to attest that she had radically altered her appearance.
“He put all the blame on my face,” Jocelyn asserted.
Despite Alec’s alleged claims, Jocelyn emerged victorious in court, securing a staggering $2.5 billion settlement with a guaranteed $100 million annually to maintain the lifestyle she had enjoyed during their 20-year marriage.
She was also permitted to retain her ex-husband’s surname.
However, in 2015, Jocelyn’s fortunes took a drastic turn when Alec’s family abruptly halted the settlement payments.
Three years later, she filed for bankruptcy, and her financial situation worsened.
Although she still possessed significant assets, primarily in the form of real estate, her bank account showed a balance of $0.
Consequently, her luxury apartments at Trump Tower were repossessed, leaving her destitute.
Undeterred by her financial struggles, Jocelyn has embarked on a new venture to tell her side of the story and, potentially, regain her financial stability.
Alongside her longtime fiancé, French-Canadian designer Lloyd Klein, she is currently filming an HBO docuseries that aims to shed light on her life.
Additionally, she is planning a reality television series, with the production team behind Keeping Up With the Kardashians at the helm.
Klein expressed Jocelyn’s desire to share her story in her own words, stating, “Jocelyn wants to tell the story with her own voice.”
While Wildenstein has generally shied away from the public eye, Klein envisions a grander project for her future, including a film series chronicling her life, with acclaimed actress Jennifer Lawrence portraying a younger Jocelyn, and actor Rami Malek embodying Alec, according DailyMail.