We haven’t talked about Balthazar Getty in a while. Getty used to be a gossip staple circa 2008, which is when he abandoned his wife and children to run off with Sienna Miller. Sienna and Balthy spent months flaunting their affair in sun-soaked beaches in Europe and then, suddenly, they were done and Balthy returned to his wife, Rosetta Getty. You can see Rosetta and Balthazar together in these photos from June of this year. Ever since Balthy returned to her, Rosetta has had that same smug look, like “I told you he would come back.” I never understood that whole thing – why did Balthazar leave his wife in the first place? Why did he conduct his affair so openly, as if he was daring his wife to divorce him? Why did Rosetta stay with him and fight to save a marriage to Getty? Granted, Balthazar is insanely rich (he’s probably got $300 million or more of family money) but is all of that money worth the humiliation? When Balthazar came back to her, Rosetta even organized a happy-family photo shoot with Harper’s Bazaar. It was the weirdest thing.
Anyway, now that most people have forgotten the particulars of that whole sordid mess in 2008, Balthazar Getty feels free enough to give an interview about his life. He’s 41 years old and he’s sort of a DJ/musician, because why not? Getty gave a rare interview to the Evening Standard this week, and some of these quotes are just… wow.
His 2008 affair with Sienna Miller: The affair is “ancient history”, he says, “another lifetime”, something he doesn’t talk about any more, except to say that going back to his wife Rosetta, 46, a fashion designer, has made their marriage “stronger”. “Without going down, you can’t rise again,” he says — a little awkwardly.
Turning 40: He decided it was “time to put fire under my ass”. He needed to take stock, quit smoking cigarettes and stop whinging about being worth £200 million and everyone judging him for it, he says. “I’ve gotten more comfortable with who I am. Where I come from, being ‘a Getty’. I don’t see it any more as something I have to run from, or prove to people that I’m not who they might perceive me to be. I’ve been able to own that and feel good about it.”
He bought a Porsche Turbo: “It was my first ‘F*** You’ car. I haven’t normally done that. And that’s part of being OK with ‘it’ [being a Getty].”
The guilt that comes with massive inherited wealth: “It’s termed Bread of Shame when you are given things that you don’t earn.”
Are his kids spoiled? “Of course they are incredibly spoiled and that’s because I am, and they are a part of my world. They didn’t ask at a young age to be flown first class.” On the other hand, to help them realise “how lucky they are” and give them “a real sense of gratitude”, Balthazar “always exposes them to the harshness and the realities of poverty. “Even as young kids they were putting together food boxes and delivering them at night to the homeless in LA. California has a huge disparity between the ultra-ultra rich and poor and I’ve always made them aware of it. The last thing I wanted was rich, entitled brats.”
He acted for a while but: “Music was my mistress and then ultimately became my wife”.
His home life: “We’re an ordinary family. At least five days a week we have supper together. No TV, none of that. We sit and talk. Everybody shares about their day. And I play with them — sports, games, play songs, drawing, painting, whatever it is.”
Whether he has an army of staffers: “Look, I do have a very full, very blessed life, full of great people who allow me to be very comfortable, and for that I am very grateful. So probably some of the clichés are true, but it doesn’t define me.”
Bread of Shame??? I’ve never heard that before. It sounds like the kind of slang rich people use amongst themselves. “Yar, it’s so difficult to maintain the Porsche bought with the bread of shame.” As for his comments on his affair with Sienna Miller… um… “Without going down, you can’t rise again.” Filthy. And I doubt his marriage is that much stronger, more like he’s just on a tighter lease these days. And for what reason? I still don’t get it.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
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