"The Hitman's Bodyguard" star Salma Hayek is married to a billionaire businessman who supposedly wanted his former girlfriend, model Linda Evangelista, to abort their son.
Salma Hayek might be one of Hollywood's most successful Mexican actresses, but she has not escaped social media scrutiny. Her husband, Kering CEO François-Henri Pinault, has also made headlines over the years.
When Hayek and Pinault began dating, his former girlfriend, Canadian fashion model Linda Evangelista, became pregnant. Years later, Evangelista claimed he asked her to terminate her pregnancy.
Salma Hayek and François-Henri Pinault posing for an Instagram photo posted on September 1, 2018 [left]. Hayek, Pinault, and their family vacationing in September 2018 [right] | Photo: Instagram.com/salmahayek
MARRYING PINAULT FOR MONEY
Hayek and Pinault tied the knot on Valentine's Day 2009 in Paris. Since then, some people have claimed she married him because he is wealthy.
Apart from his CEO position at the luxury good company Kering, Pinault is also President of the holding business Groupe Artémis. According to Forbes, Pinault is a billionaire.
Salma Hayek and Francois-Henri Pinault on October 5, 2010 in Paris, France | Photo: Getty Images
In February 2021, Hayek appeared on Dax Shepard and Monica Padman's podcast "Armchair Expert" and addressed the previously mentioned claims. She said:
"When I married him, everybody said, 'Oh, it's an arranged marriage, she married him for the money.' I'm like, 'Yeah, whatever, [expletive].' Think what you want."
Hayek and her husband have been in a relationship for 15 years and are still "strong in love." She doesn't get offended when she hears people say she married him for his money anymore.
Salma Hayek and Francois-Henri Pinault on November 4, 2017 in Los Angeles, California | Photo: Getty Images
Wealthy men are often discriminated against and associated with stereotypes, including that they lack values, are "materialistic" and "stupid," or don't deserve to be that rich.
Even though Hayek initially believed the stereotypes were true and had preconceptions when she met Pinault, his personality changed her mind. She revealed those labels didn't apply to him.
[Pinault] "made it perfectly clear" that he would not support the child.
Salma Hayek Pinault and Francois-Henri Pinault on November 29, 2017 in London, England | Photo: Getty Images
Hayek added that her husband was not a workaholic. As soon as he finishes work, he goes home with a smile on his face, happy to see his family and ready to make them laugh.
When they go on vacations, he would be in the moment and pay no attention to his job responsibilities. Hayek pointed out that people couldn't imagine "what a joy" her husband was, so she kept ignoring unfounded claims.
PINAULT'S ISSUES WITH HIS EX
While Hayek and Pinault's love story has been outstanding, his previous relationship with Evangelista was far from perfect. Even though Pinault and Evangelista were together for only four months, they share a son named Augustin James.
The issues between the former couple escalated so much that she took him to court over childcare support in 2011. Evangelista never disclosed the amount of child support she asked for, but she supposedly wanted five figures to cover Augustin's nanny, armed drivers, education, and more.
Her lawyer also claimed that Pinault was initially happy about the pregnancy news but then asked Evangelista to terminate the pregnancy. He then "made it perfectly clear" that he would not support the child.
In the trials, the businessman admitted that he broke up with the Canadian model as soon as he learned about her pregnancy because it was not planned. They had been dating for a short time and didn't know each other well.
Pinault believed she became pregnant intentionally and added that he had no part in deciding whether to keep the baby or not. He told her he would recognize the kid, and he did it.
However, he never paid her anything in child support for the first years of the boy's life because she never asked, and he didn't offer. When Evangelista finally asked for money in August 2011, he accepted "in 20 minutes."
A spokesperson for Pinault eventually denied the claims that he told Evangelista to terminate the pregnancy. They labeled them as "completely untrue" and "utterly false."
FAIRNESS BETWEEN HIS TWO CHILDREN
Less than a year after Augustine was born, Pinault and Hayek welcomed Valentina, their only daughter. Evangelista's attorney showed the differences between Valentina and Augustine's provisions in court.
Hayek once said she didn't want to share how she met her husband.
When Valentina turns 21, she will inherit a $12 million house in Los Angeles. As of 2012, she had stayed at the Four Seasons Hotel in Bora Bora and spent Christmases on yachts in St. Barts and Miami.
On the other hand, Pinault had never invited Augustine on a trip or talked to him about his older siblings Mathilde and Francois, Pinault's children from his first marriage. They live in Paris with their mother, Dorothée Lepère, married to Pinault between 1996 and 2004.
It is unclear how the court battle unfolded, but it seems that Augustine became more involved in Pinault and Hayek's family. In August 2021, the actress shared a photo smiling with her stepson during a family vacation.
PRAISING PINAULT
Hayek once said she didn't want to share how she met her husband because it was so "romantic and amazing" that she didn't want to "vulgarize it" by making it a story to make herself interesting. Still, she gushes about him quite frequently.
The "Eternals" star admitted Pinault was the best husband in the world and she could be herself around him. She has never felt he limits her, and it is one of the main factors to their successful marriage.
The fact that they were late bloomers when they started dating (she was 39, and he was 43) has also helped, especially because she knew herself better at that age. About having Valentina at 41 years old, Hayek said:
"I think I'm a better mother because I had her later. But I do get tired. I'm not going to lie."
On September 22, 2021, Hayek celebrated her 55th birthday in a very unusual way: she and her brother, Sami, taught her "Eternals" co-star, Angelina Jolie, how to do a Mexican Mordida at her party.
While her guests cheered "Mordida," Jolie and Sami pushed Hayek's face into the cake so that she could have the first bite. Jolie and Hayek's off-screen friendship is delightful!
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