‘Our marriage finished in a natural way’

Banderas clarifies Nicole Kimpel was not responsible for his split from wife

Antonio Banderas said his new girlfriend Nicole Kimpel was not the motive for his split from his wife Melanie Griffith. The 54-year-old actor met his current girlfriend at last year’s Cannes International Film Festival, but insists things didn’t get romantic between them until he and his wife separated shortly afterwards, reported.

“Kimpel was not the motive of my divorce. I met her at the Cannes Festival last year but we both knew where we were. I was still a married man, although things were already heading the way they have now ended up,” Banderas told Spain’s Hola! magazine.

“Nicole told me, ‘You’ve got to solve your problems first, and then we’ll see’. So, there’s no direct connection of my break-up with another woman, it’s not like that,” he added.

He also said, “Once I had the divorce documents signed, we [me and Kimpel] started to get to know each other, and then the relationship started.”

The Puss in Boots actor is thankful that his 19-year marriage to Griffith ended in a ‘very natural’ way without animosity.

“With Melanie, all is good, thank God. Our marriage has finished in a very natural way, there were no ashtrays thrown to the head,” the actor said.

Banderas and Kimpel were spotted going for a jog in Marbella, Spain last year. Although they have been spotted together multiple times and seem to be getting more serious, Banderas admitted that he’s taking it slow with his girlfriend, who is 20 years younger than him.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 13^th,  2015.

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