Action superstar and politician Arnold Schwarzenegger has detailed his secret affair with a housekeeper in the upcoming Netflix documentary titled, Arnold
Recalling the moment he told his now ex-wife, Maria Shriver, of his 1996 infidelity and fathering a love child.
The Terminator actor, 75, notably had an affair with their housekeeper, Mildred Baena, and she gave birth to their son, Joseph Baena, 25, in 1997.
During a marriage counseling session in 2011, the counsellor had stated at the time, ‘Today Maria wants to be very specific about something,’ he reveals. ‘She wants to know if you’re the father of Joseph.’
The former governor of California expressed, ‘I thought my heart stopped. And then I told the truth. “Yes, Maria. Joseph is my son.” She was obviously crushed by that.’
The American and Austrian actor explained that at first, both himself and Mildred assumed the child was her husband Rogelio’s, and she continued to work for the Schwarzenegger family. ‘In the beginning I really didn’t know, but the older he got, the more it became clear to me.’
The actor first crossed paths with Maria, the niece of 35th President of the United States, John F. Kennedy, at a tennis match in August 1977. The two became engaged after Arnold popped the big question to Shriver in his home country of Austria in 1985.
Throughout the course of their 25-year marriage, the pair welcomed daughters Katherine, 33, and Christina, 31, as well as sons, Patrick, 29, and Christopher, 25, who was born mere days before his other son, Joseph, was born.
The housekeeper retired in 2011, the same year that Maria ended her relationship with Arnold, prompting their separation. She filed for divorce in July 2011, which wasn’t officially finalized until 10 years later in 2021.
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