“I Love Him”: Accepting Extra-Marital Affair as Biggest Failure, Arnold Schwarzenegger Makes a Heartfelt Confession About His Son Joseph Baena

As the year 2010 was coming to a close, Arnold Schwarzenegger had many things to be thankful for. He was nearing the end of his second term as the Governor of California, and his professional and personal life seemed to be in a perfect place. Come 2011, the Schwarzenegger-Shriver household was off to a rocky start. After 25 years of marriage, Arnie and his then-wife, Maria Shriver, suddenly announced their separation. Shortly after, the L.A. Times learned the bodybuilding legend had fathered a son with one of his housekeeping staff, Mildred Baena.

Over a decade has passed since then, and there was a thing or two the Austrian Oak wanted to share recently. In episode 3 of his docu-series, Arnold, the 75-year-old revealed he had failed many times, but the affair stands as his biggest failure. Naturally, the truth had hurt everyone around him. Despite that, the proud father didn’t fall short in his words as he made a heartfelt confession about his youngest son, Joseph Baena. 

Arnold Schwarzenegger feels reluctant to talk about it

The 75-year-old recalled he had an affair in 1996. As his housekeeper Mildred Patricia Baena’s son began getting older, things became clear to Schwarzenegger. While he succeeded in keeping the secret for over a decade, it turned his life upside down in 2011. Meanwhile, once the tabloids got hold of the information that the politician had fathered a son that was kept a secret for over a decade, they were on a hunt for more information.

In the third episode, Sharwarzenegger said, contrary to popular notion, he had many failures in life, “I had failures in the past… you know, in my career, but I mean, this is a whole different ball game… A whole different dimension of failure.” However, despite his feeling, the 75-year-old also cares for his youngest son, Joseph Baena.

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“I just saw Joseph developing into a fantastic human being and this fantastic man. He makes me feel proud,” confessed the bodybuilding legend. “It was wrong, what I did,” added Arnie. Yet, he didn’t want to let the 25-year-old down. “He’s very much welcome in this world and I love him,” Arnie said in Part 3: The American. The former Mr. Universe also revealed why he feels reluctant to talk about this dark chapter of his life.

The moment the Austrian’s heart stopped

The former Hollywood superstar revealed recounting what he did wrong opens up the wounds again. While he and everyone involved in the incident might have moved on, the pain still lingers. Talking about how everything unraveled in 2011, Arnie recalled the moment he felt everything had stopped. During a marriage counseling session, the counselor said Maria Shriver wanted to know if Joseph Baena was his son.

“I was like, I thought my heart stopped,” said the 75-year-old before he disclosed the painful truth. While the incident shattered life as he had known it, Schwarzenegger is glad that he and Shriver still raised their four children successfully. They no longer share the same roof, but the couple comes together to celebrate their children’s success and support them during hardship. Joseph Baena maintains a respectful relationship with his siblings and has his father’s support.

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