Arnold Schwarzenegger rose from humble beginnings to become the face of bodybuilding, an actor, and California’s 38th Governor. His triumph, however, was tainted by countless scandals and controversies.

Schwarzenegger dated two women before marrying Maria Shriver, his wife of 27 years. Barbara Outland was his first love, whom he began dating in 1969 and ended six years later. In 1977, he began dating stylist Sue Moray after his breakup.

For Schwarzenegger and Moray, an open relationship was a ‘turn-on.’ They dated for four years, even after Schwarzenegger met and began seeing Maria Shriver, who would become his future wife.

Even for a man of his stature, managing two relationships was a difficult nut to crack, and it led to a series of infidelities and deception. He would describe his split from Outland as follows:

‘Basically, it boiled down to this: she was a well-balanced lady who desired an average, solid lifestyle, and I was not a well-balanced man who hated the concept of an ordinary life.

Shriver was 21 when she first met paths with Schwarzenegger. She had gone to her aunt Ethel Kennedy’s Robert F. Kennedy pro-celebrity tennis event, which Schwarzenegger would be playing in.

Shriver was charmed with Schwarzenegger after conversing and dancing at the event. Schwarzenegger, on the other hand, had no idea who she was or why she was there. They started dating soon after, but despite appearing to be genuinely in love, Schwarzenegger kept his romance with Moray going for a year before she called it quits.

Schwarzenegger was at the top of his career in the 1980s, having released blockbusters like ‘Predator’ and ‘The Terminator,’ and while still being married to Shriver, infidelity rumors followed him everywhere he went.

All of these reports reached Shriver, and when Schwarzenegger decided it was time to propose, Shriver was initially turned off by his offers, declining them twice. For the actor, though, the third time was the charm.

The couple paid a visit to the “Commando” actor’s hometown of Thal, Austria, in August 1985 and asked her to marry him for the third time. Shriver was skeptical, as Nicki Swift reports: ‘What’s so amazing about today, Arnold? Have I been very good recently? Have I become truly stunning?’

Despite her reservations and concerns, she accepted his proposal and the couple married in April 1986 at St. Francis Xavier Roman Catholic Church in Hyannis, Massachusetts.

Katherine Eunice was born three years after the wedding, followed by Maria Aurelia in 1991, Patrick Arnold two years later, and Christopher Sargent in 1997. Despite having a gorgeous wife and four great children, Schwarzenegger continued to have affairs with various women and was always surrounded in rumors about his romances.

Schwarzenegger suddenly changed careers in the early 2000s and disappeared from the big screen. He ran for the governorship of California. Despite the fact that his wife was aware of his numerous affairs, she stuck by him and supported his campaigns, according to Nicki Swift:

‘If this man wasn’t an A-plus human being, I wouldn’t be standing here. I wouldn’t waste any time. I would not have quit my beloved work. If I didn’t believe in this man, I wouldn’t be doing any of this.’

Schwarzenegger supposedly had an affair with his costar Brigitte Nielsen while filming ‘Red Sonja’ in 1985. According to reports, while Shriver was in the United States, Nielsen and Schwarzenegger went together through Austria, Munich, Vienna, and Rome, even staying in the same hotel.

Following their time together, Nielsen is said to have fallen in love with the actor and wished to marry him, which Schwarzenegger turned down due to Shriver. In 2012, he finally admitted to the affair. It wouldn’t be his final adventure, despite being one of many.

In 1996, when his wife and children were on vacation, the “Total Recall” actor had a romance with the family maid, Mildred Baena. The affair remained a secret, but Baena gave birth to a boy in 1997, just days after Shriver gave birth to the couple’s lastborn son.

Despite the fact that Baena was a married woman, Shriver began to have questions when she noticed the likeness between Baena’s son and her husband. She confronted her husband about Baena, but he denied any participation. According to ABC News, she would open up to Oprah, saying:

‘I am an independent lady. I was not ‘bred’ to look the other way, to quote.

Nonetheless, she kept quiet about her suspicions at the time, waiting until Schwarzenegger’s term was through. Schwarzenegger, on the other hand, was well clear that Joseph was his son. The likeness was startling. According to ABC News, he would write:

‘There was no doubt in my mind that he was my son.’
Shriver insisted that attend counseling sessions the day after his term in office ended to help them cope with the shift from public to private life.

Schwarzenegger, on the other hand, was unprepared for what was to come. According to the Daily News, he wrote about the time his life came crashing down in “Total Recall:

My Unbelievably True Life Story’:
‘Maria wanted to come here today and ask about a child — whether you fathered a child with your housekeeper Mildred,’ the therapist stated as soon as we sat down.

‘It’s true,’ I told the therapist. He wrote. Schwarzenegger began to fawn immediately after admitting that he was Joseph’s father, regretting how horribly he had screwed up. He told Shriver he still liked her and that she was the “ideal wife.

Shriver had had enough of her husband’s antics after initially supporting him through all of the infidelity allegations. She split up with him soon after his confession and eventually filed for divorce.

Schwarzenegger has maintained that he has no idea why he cheated, but it was most likely a combination of incompetence and ego. He also stated in his memoir that he hopes to see Shriver again sometime.

Schwarzenegger is no exception to the rule that Hollywood stars live extravagantly. Shriver and his wife lived in a mansion in Pacific Palisades, California, where they had all of their children and where Shriver had an affair with Baena.

The house is one of 16 private residences off Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles that have only been home to the rich and powerful in the film and politics industries.

Following their separation in 2011, the pair went through a ten-year divorce process. Because their children were all adults, there was no custody or child support dispute, so it’s unclear why it took so long.

Shriver has returned to NBC after resigning as a Dateline correspondent after her husband declared his candidacy for governor. She now reports, promotes, and campaigns for women’s rights.

In 2018, she published a book called ‘I’ve Been Thinking…: Reflections, Prayers, and Meditations for a Meaningful Life.  
Since his breakup from Shriver, Schwarzenegger has acted in films such as ‘Maggie,’ ‘Terminator Genisys,’ “Aftermath,’ and ‘Terminator: Dark Fate.

In the previous decade, the two have stayed busy with parenthood while keeping a close relationship. “They have a fantastic relationship; they’re really close and look after the kids, and they spend a lot of time together.” According to the New York Post, a mutual friend told Page Six.

Schwarzenegger has now moved on and is now dating Heather Milligan, a 27-year-old physical therapist. He also has a wonderful relationship with his son Joseph, with whom he frequently goes to the gym.