Elon Musk filed for his third divorce on New Year's Eve, a day typically spent by most couples celebrating another year spent together and renewing vows for the coming year. Musk, who made a fortune for himself when he co-founded PayPal and is now chief of two of the most innovative companies in Silicon Valley, is putting an end to his second marriage to actress Talulah Riley.
The 29-year-old actress, who appeared in films such as "Inception," "Pride and Prejudice" and "St. Trinian's 2: The Legend of Fritton's Gold," will reportedly be receiving $16 million in cash and other property assets as part of a financial settlement agreed upon in a prenuptial agreement. The Tesla and SpaceX CEO filed his divorce papers before the Los Angeles County Superior Court.
For Musk, whose net worth is estimated to be $11.7 billion, the $16 million he owes his second-time ex-wife is a drop in the bucket.
In January 2012, Musk announced his first divorce from Riley to the whole world over Twitter. Riley received $4.2 million from Musk at the time.
"It was an amazing four years. I will love you forever," Musk tweeted to Riley at the time. "You will make someone very happy one day."
It turned out that "someone" Musk was referring to was himself when in July 2013, just 18 months after their first divorce, the couple reconciled and got married again.
However, it appears the second marriage was anything but smooth sailing, as the two are said to have been living apart for the last five months while Riley is back in her homeland writing and directing her first feature film "Scottish Mussel."
On Dec. 31, Musk was his usual vocal self on Twitter, but he remained silent about his second split with his second wife.
The Tesla chief instead posted to a blog post by Tesla chief technical officer JB Straubel about the driving range for the company's Model S family of electric sedans. Musk also mentioned a charger that automatically moves out from the wall and connects with the car "like a solid metal snake."
Musk and Riley first married in 2010. The couple did not have any children, but Musk has five sons from his first marriage with writer Justine Musk (nee Wilson), who detailed her marriage to Silicon Valley's "Tony Stark with the Iron Man suit" in Marie Claire magazine, where she referred to herself a "starter wife."
