Arnold Schwarzenegger reveals how he told Maria Shriver about secret son
Arnold Schwarzenegger, the former Governor of California and Hollywood actor, has revealed how he told his then-wife Maria Shriver about his secret son with their housekeeper Mildred Baena. In his forthcoming, three-part Netflix docuseries, Schwarzenegger shares the story of how the bombshell came out that Joseph Baena, now 25, was his son. The couple had married in 1986 and are the parents of four children. The affair with Mildred Baena happened in 1996.
Schwarzenegger said he and Baena believed she was pregnant by her husband, but he began to suspect otherwise as John grew older. « In the beginning, I really didn’t know, but the older he got, the more it became clear to me, » Schwarzenegger said. « It was then just a matter of, ‘How do you keep this quiet?' » The Terminator star shares the story in his Netflix series Arnold, which premieres on Wednesday.
The revelation that shocked Maria Shriver
During his time as Governor of California, Schwarzenegger and Shriver had been in marriage counseling. One day, the counselor said, « Today Maria wants to be very specific about something. She wants to know if you’re the father of Joseph. » Schwarzenegger reportedly says, « I thought my heart stopped. And then I told the truth. ‘Yes, Maria. Joseph is my son.’ She was obviously crushed by that. »
The revelation shocked the world and led to the couple’s separation in 2011. However, Schwarzenegger has since reconciled with his son Joseph, who he says is « fantastic » and « very smart. » The actor has also written about the affair and its aftermath in his memoir, Total Recall: My Unbelievably True Life Story.
Keywords: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Maria Shriver, secret son, Mildred Baena, Netflix, docuseries, affair, Governor of California.