Mary-Kate Olsen finally got to file her divorce papers this week, after trying and failing to file for an emergency divorce. So good for her. Meanwhile, Page Six had a lengthy piece this weekend about Mary-Kate and Olivier Sarkozy’s estranged marriage and chaotic divorce filing drama. MK apparently tried to file for divorce in April but the paperwork couldn’t go through because of the pandemic. She then petitioned for an emergency divorce filing and that was tossed out again a few weeks back. Everything we’ve heard about their marriage and estrangement has emphasized the simple fact that they were a bad match from the start. So what else? Page Six threw together some old stuff with some new, and here are some highlights:
Why this has been so public: Mary-Kate Olsen intended to keep her blockbuster divorce documents a secret, but the coronavirus shattered her privacy. The papers, filed on May 14 were meant to be sealed, as is usual in such sensitive matters, legal sources familiar with the situation told The Post. However, with New York State Supreme Courts closed, they went into an e-filing system — meaning they were not automatically sealed. For Mary-Kate, who cherishes privacy above everything, having her divorce go public has been “extremely difficult,” according to a fashion source who has worked with her.
Olivier cancelled the lease on their Gramercy Park apartment: Emails added to the court documents by Sarkozy reveal that Olivier has requested building management for permission to move his things out, but so far been denied because of the pandemic lockdown. “The apartment is just sitting there,” a source who knows Olivier said. MK is currently out east with her sister and friends, Olivier remains in Manhattan with family. “Mary-Kate is okay,” said the fashion source. “But it would not have been her decision to end a marriage and move during a pandemic.”
Why MK was with an older man: Michael Pagnotta, who was Mary-Kate and Ashley’s publicist for 10 years, told The Post: “I never found their relationship strange. The girls grew up around older, successful men from a very early age because they were so young when they started in [show] business. Both Ashley and Mary-Kate were used to dealing with older, decisive people who became very influential in their lives and careers and who they saw as peers. I can understand why Mary-Kate would be with a guy like him.”
Whether MK really wants kids: This past week, reports surfaced that Mary-Kate and Olivier split because of her desire to have children, but the fashion source is skeptical and said, “I’m not so sure about that. All I know is that Mary-Kate loves Olivier’s kids.”
The prenup & money: As with his marriage to Charlotte, Olivier also signed a prenup with Mary-Kate. According to the court documents, she has asked for a judge to uphold it and for Sarkozy to pay her medical and dental bills. But Mary-Kate is hardly hurting for money. “The Olsens have as much money as Sarkozy does, maybe more,” said the fashion source. “Both of the girls have a lot of confidence in themselves and in business. Mary-Kate is very strong, both she and Ashley are. These girls are nothing like you expect them to be. Mary-Kate will survive.”
Again, Olivier is very French: Even though Sarkozy hasn’t lived in France for decades and isn’t that close to his half-brother, he is still very much a Frenchman at heart. “He sees himself as the alpha male,” the Paris source said. “He will get even more French as he fights her. They can turn cold very fast on their wives once the relationship is over.”
I’ve seen some French peeps in the comments arguing that Not All French Men want stay-at-home wives, and I’m sure they will argue that not all French men “turn cold” on their estranged wives during a divorce. I don’t think entire nationalities can be painted with such a broad brush either, but I also think Olivier sounds like an a–hole and I don’t think he understands that the American media will completely take Mary-Kate’s side just out of patriotism. As for the rest of it… I can understand how MK has always been around older people throughout her life and career, and she probably saw Olivier as a very stabilizing and comforting force for a time. But then sh-t got real.
Photos courtesy of Backgrid.
I don’t know, I feel that a lot of these stories about these two (not necessarily here) are very xenophobic. Literally what does him being French have anything to do with it?
Agree, I’m actually quite shocked by the so-called “Frenchness” described here. Never heard this kind of stereotype towards the French until now. Free with affair? yeah Snobbish? Yeah. But the whole alpha male bullshit? Isn’t it more to America and other country with lots of Machismo culture?
It’s a stereotype I’ve heard. And women didn’t get the right to vote in France until the 40s. They were one of the last countries in Europe to extend it.
I think the truth is somewhere in the middle.
They were a bad match, he saw a younger woman, probably he can’t deal with her success Which is translated in the alpha man stuff.
Not so much machismo…but misogyny and sexism? Oh yeah.
I will say this phrase?: “ He will get even more French as he fights her.“…
If I was a lesser woman I would make some stereotypical joke about surrendering…but I’m not, so I won’t. 😬
As an American who lives in Paris and has dated A LOT of Frenchmen, I can attest to the domineering. I am a very strong personality, I stand up for myself and it is the one thing Frenchmen hated. At first they like that you’re “feisty”, but if you don’t back down be prepared to be on their bad side. They cannot abide strong women. That’s why I’ve dated so many of them. I gave up. It’s just not a cultural trait that is conducive to mine.
The French are very backwards when it comes to women’s rights. They may have feminism but there is nothing feminist about their culture (unless you count women there to be pretty). It’s weird. And the high rates of domestic abuse attest to their backwardness. You definitely have to live there to understand how they can pretend to be feminist but not be at all. It’s just a very strange thing. Kind of like the “we’re not racist” but no person of color holds any top jobs in France. France is a strange conundrum.
Because clearly no American male pulls that alpha male BS. /sarcasm
The stay at home thing is very odd as a french stereotype since actually France is kind of famous for its good child are system with crèches, children entering school at 3 etc. Most french mothers work and it’s not at all seen as something that negatively impacts children. France certainly has problems with sexism (like all countries) but not specifically related to working women/mothers, in this aspect they are actually better than other countries.
That’s always been my impression of France.
When will they start leaking each other secrets? All these dumb accusations are getting boring now.
He looks like her embarrassing uncool dad in every pic of them together.
Aren’t the Olsens like 35 now? Seems weird the source keeps calling them girls and implying we would expect them to be meek. They are freaking business moguls – everyone knows that.
I always get a kick out of people who describe themselves as “alpha”, it’s so idiotic. It’s a description meant for pack animals like wolves, and when it’s used by people it ALWAYS means they simply like to control everyone around them and be the center of attention, but they truly believe their personalities are just so special and amazing that they were chosen as “alpha”. The men who use that term are especially stupid, lol.
I’m glad Mary-Kate is getting away from that controlling behavior, I know first hand how awful it can be.
Furthermore the scientist who first posited the “alpha” hierarchy for wolves deeply regrets it, because it has nothing to do with actual wolf social structure. He wrote a paper based on an observation of wolves caged in a sanctuary, and people interpolated it to apply to all wolves, and from there to be some sort of sociological theory too!
That’s interesting, I’ll look it up now. Thnx
My ex loved calling himself an alpha. Everything is alpha, beta, alpha. I wrote a whole post on my blog where I think I finally came around to understanding where these odd traits come from. The sad thing is I used to like men that were alpha, but after that episode I realize it is for weak men who resent women.
I wonder when in time douchbag behavior will cease to be justify by “culture”.