THEFriday afternoon in the early afternoon it started to become an average day for Kim Kardashian West. She had uploaded videos to her Instagram story showcasing the latest designs from her SKIMS shapewear line and posted photos of herself lounging in her living room, with a thin gold band still on her ring finger.
But just hours later, it was announced that after nearly seven years of marriage, Kim had filed for divorce from her husband Kanye West.
The Kardashians are notorious for their business acumen. Beyond just appearing in their reality series Keeping up with the Kardashianseach of the sisters run their own business.
Kylie Jenner runs a billion dollar makeup empire, Kim runs both a beauty and shapewear line, Khloe owns the Good American clothing brand, and Kourtney developed a Goop-inspired blog Poosh
And perhaps the most recent example of the family’s talent to create profitable businesses is Kendall Jenner launching a tequila brand. But because she didn’t want to be considered just a celebrity-endorsed drink, Kendall anonymously entered her 818 tequila into a handful of contests and won quite a few awards. With this she proved that it was a quality product in itself.
With these measures, it should come as no surprise that after months of speculation Kim and Kanye headed for divorce, the long-awaited confirmation of the rumor was part of a larger game plan.
According to TMZ, which first announced the news, the divorce is going smoothly, with both parties already agreeing on joint custody of their four children North, 7; Saint, 5; Chicago, 3; and Psalm, 1. The outlet also reported that Kim and Kayne are okay with the terms of their marriage contract and are “far away” in reaching a settlement on their various properties.
With such an amicable divorce, it begs the question: why has Kim now submitted a file?
Kim is represented by the lawyer Laura Wasser (the basis for Laura Dern’s character in Marriage Story), who previously said she enjoyed filing her celebrity client’s divorce on a quiet Friday, ideally for a holiday weekend, in hopes that the press would slip.
It seemed the weekend prior would have been the perfect opportunity to file a file, if ever there was one for arguably one of the world’s most famous women, with the news dominated by the ouster of former President Donald Trump and the distraction from the long weekend and Valentine’s Day.
So it cannot be a coincidence that the submission is just under a month before the last season of Keeping up with the Kardashians broadcast on March 18.
Likewise, Kim has kept quiet since it was first reported that her marriage was about to keep up appearances by occasionally wearing her ring and posting on social media like normal.
The Kardashian-Jenner family have long used their show to tackle situations they wouldn’t discuss in real time, instead waiting for the dust to settle to have the final say, often letting them control the story.
When it was rumored for months that Kylie Jenner was pregnant, there was no comment from her team until she dropped a video showing her pregnancy journey. A few months later, her pregnancy was her storyline for the season.
For the most part, Khloe Kardashian let the drama between her partner Tristan Thompson cheat on her – once when she was nine months pregnant, and then again when he was accused of dating family friend Jordyn Woods – on screen.
Likewise, Kim has kept quiet since it was first reported that her marriage was about to keep up appearances by occasionally wearing her ring and posting on social media like normal.
The past year had been extremely difficult for the couple, seemingly fueled by West’s announcement that he was running for president. While on the campaign trail, he went on a bizarre rant and said Kim had considered aborting their daughter North. The result was catastrophic, and Kim was seen flying west into Wyoming and suffered a tearful breakdown in his car.
One of the last times Kim publicly addressed her marriage to West was in July 2020, when she came out with a statement discussing his bipolar diagnosis, writing that she was “friendly.[s] that the media and the public give us the compassion and empathy that is necessary so that we can get through this. “
Kim should only be expected to use the show’s final season to tell her side of the story, without social media and news media weighing in on any development.
In a way, it’s a beautiful character arc to itself. The first season was about her struggle to achieve and cope with fame, even the unfamiliar territories, and now 14 years later, Kim is in complete control of her life and choices, but surrounded by family as always.