Jon Gosselin says it cost him a lot of money to keep his 2009 divorce from Kate Gosselin off of TV— over $1 million bucks, actually!
In a new bombshell interview with Daily Mail TV, the former Jon & Kate Plus 8 star revealed that TLC— the network that aired his family’s reality TV show— was so desperate to keep him and Kate from divorcing, it offered him “seven figures plus” to stay married to Kate for a few more years.
“I could have made millions of dollars if I would’ve just continued, took their offer and stayed married for two years,” Jon told Daily Mail TV, after explaining that he is no longer under the 10-year gag order placed on him in 2009. “But I couldn’t live with myself. I couldn’t live a lie….I just wasn’t gonna lie on camera. I wasn’t gonna have a fake marriage.
“How can you tell your kids not to lie and then go lie to the American public?” he continued. “I wasn’t going to have side girlfriends and do all these crazy things and continue to keep on lying and lying and lying for a buck. I just wasn’t, I left.”
Jon stated that when he tried to quit filming ‘Jon & Kate Plus 8,’ TLC— who he says paid for marriage counseling sessions for the couple— was not happy.
“They’re like, ‘You can’t [quit],'” Jon said. “I’m like, ‘Well I’ve quit many jobs, I can do whatever I want.’ I hung a big sign on my gate and I said, ‘If crew comes in here, you’re all trespassing. And no one came in. So we had a nine-month hiatus and I got sued.”
Jon said that one month after TLC announced that show would be known as Kate Plus 8 going forward, he filed a legal action against the network to keep the show from continuing, but it led to the network filing a lawsuit against him for breach of contract. (Daily Mail reports that Jon and the network ended up settling for $200,000.)
“I quit my job but, you know what, my divorce was never filmed, ever,” he said. “None of the drama, none of the episodes will ever air. It’s the best decision I ever made.”
Jon— who is the caretaker of two of his eight children currently– stated that his main goal was to keep his divorce off the show so that his kids didn’t have to watch the footage years later.
“My kids were like four or five years old [at that time], so I’m not going to have it filmed so they can relive it later,” he said. “I took the Number 1 reality show off the air just because I didn’t want to film my divorce…you have to understand, this wasn’t an easy decision. I could have made a lot of money.
“But what was more important was my family and not having that divorce aired because it would still be here today on reruns,” he continued. “The demise of your parents’ marriage, who wants that documented for the world to see? Not me… The wanted me to lie so they could keep their ratings.”
Jon explained that he was getting a lot of pressure from Kate and the network to continue with the show.
“I had Kate against me, I had TLC against me and when you’re inside the fishbowl you have nowhere to move, you have no way of breaking the glass. But when you’re outside you can see everything.”
Although it’s been 10 years since their divorce, Jon does not have many kind words to say about his ex, whose new show Kate Plus Date recently aired on TLC.
“Kate is not doing the shows for her family,” Jon said. “Kate is doing it for herself. She’s narcissistic and selfish. That’s it. Period. All of this is for her– ‘Kate Plus 8,’ ‘Kate Plus Date’– it’s her name first. She always speaks for the children. It’s all lies. They all have voices.”
Daily Mail stated that it had made repeated attempts to get a comment from TLC and Kate regarding what Jon had said in the interview but did not hear back.
Watch some clips of Jon’s interview below:
RELATED STORY: Kate Gosselin Addresses ‘Monster Mom’ Rumors & Reveals Why Some of Her Eight Kids Don’t See Their Father Jon Gosselin
(Photos: Thos Robinson/Getty Images; Amy Sussman/Getty Images; Instagram)
Well kudos to your mom…but you dad DID appear periodically and I would imagine he had a paycheck with him.
Jon was MIA in every respect.
Also if there WAS true abuse those kids would have been ripped from her lickety-split.
So maaaaaybe you want to take what Jon is spewing with a very large grain of salt.
Kate is a C U Next Tuesday. Oh, fuck it. She’s a cunt. She doesn’t even deserve the cutesy saying.
Oh come on!!!
You try providing for EIGHT kids on your own!
My parents had five kids and usually two to three foster kids. My dad was military so my mom did have to look after a large number of children on her own for up to fourteen months at a time. She was able to run a business, keep us fed and clothed, and disciplined without mentally terrorizing us or sending anyone away because she couldn’t handle us. LOTS of families have a large amount of kids without using them for profit. Kate has other options to support herself and those kids but it’s HARD WORK and she’s allergic to that.
I’ve seen several interviews with Christina Crawford, and I know that there were people who were well aware of the abuse going on in that house. There was a police officer who told her to stay strong until she turned eighteen, and then, “Get the hell out of there!” He knew something was wrong, and he wouldn’t place her in juvenile detention, because he knew she didn’t belong there.
Who’s Christina Crawford?
She wrote, “Mommie Dearest,” about life with her “adoptive parent” Joan Crawford, the actress.
That part had me in tears! Joan Crawford was a horrible human being. She’s waiting for Kate in Hell.
There will always be more to the Collin story than we will ever know and to respect his privacy it should stay that way.
But…lol..I believe Jon was well informed of his treatment plan, etc. I’m sure major medical decisions were in the custody agreement. I think Jon “checked out” of fatherhood for awhile.
You’re wrong. Kate herself went on national TV in the fall of 2016, after her big People spread talking about Collin living away from home, and said that she was the ONLY one (I guess she meant besides his doctors/counselors) who knew where he was. She clearly got a big kick of that. And once Jon discovered where he was (did you read the letter Collin had smuggled out to his dad?), Kate moved him further away, to the other side of the state. So no, Jon was not informed of his “treatment” plan.
Child abuse isn’t just about bruises and broken bones. The way she’s treated both of the children who now live with Jon has been documented in court and should have resulted in some sort of punishment a long time ago. At the very least, TLC should drop her lazy ass and let her live on the millions she’s made by browbeating her kids into filming.
No amount of$$$$ is worth staying with her, she’s a control freak and a bully.
I really hope that the reason he didn’t want the divorce aired was so the kids didn’t have to relive it – that’s a really good reason. But 10 years ago, was he really thinking about that or did he just want to stick it to Kate? 10 years is a long time to think of stories that sound good.
On the other hand – for a million dollars back then? I would have tried to put up with that shrew for a million dollars.
I’d like to know what any of us would have done being sole provider for EIGHT children. Kudos to Kate for not taking the road Jon took.
OF COURSE now he’s back…the minute the gag order is lifted, to smear the only parent who provided for HIS kids.
She was making big $$$ from TLC and appearances. It is not like a typical single mom. Maybe she should do what everyone was telling Jon to do back then – get a job!
He’s just as bad as her. Don’t claim you were protecting your kids by keeping your divorce off TV when you run to do an interview the moment the gag order is done. Please, this is just as messy. Shame on the both of them.
As I recall, he was pretty open about his dating life after the divorce so I am not sure why he didn’t see that as being hurtful to the kids. Yes he didn’t do a show about it, but it was in the media. He could have just taken time to focus on the kids instead of his libido.
I get why Jon feels like he has to clear his name since Kate very much tried to paint him as a lazy jerk who suddenly abandoned his family and later sent Collin away, but he really needs to keep quiet for his kids’ sake. They’re too old for this and deserve to start their own lives. Every time Kate and Jon throw barbs at each other, their kids are exploited just a little more.
Collin seems to be thriving in Jon’s care. He and Hannah seem healthy and happy, so that’s the most important thing. And given that Kate apparently hasn’t even seen Collin and didn’t bother fighting for custody or visitation, she can stop using #kateplusmy8.
she may be narcissistic and controlling, but when he decided to have an affair, wear bedazzled clothing and pretend to DJ, she was there raising those 8 kids. I’m sure there’s some truth to his story, and he seems to have matured, but by bashing her now hes bringing to the light the same.thing he said he was trying to avoid 10 years ago. He is also a money hungry narcissist. At least he is finally stepping up now.
Kate is insufferable, but the minute the ten-year gag order is up, Jon runs straight to a tabloid to bash her repeatedly, berate her for exploiting her kids, and to pat himself on the back for not selling his divorce story, all while complaining that she berates him, exploiting his kids’ privacy, and describing his divorce story. I think it’s likely that they’re BOTH toxic people – maybe in different ways – who ultimately care more about themselves than their poor kids’ right to a private, normal, happy upbringing. On another note, the story behind Collin’s absence has been so confusing, and the true story is heartbreaking.
Wow has my opinion changed completely about Jon. Kate showed herself for what she truly is-a narcissistic diva. Watching her melting down, throwing temper tantrums and keeping Jon from the kids has been painful to watch. The only thing I will say is that I do understand why she would continue the show. Jon did have problems holding a steady job and couldn’t have provided much in the way of financial help. Unfortunately instead of doing the show for a few more years and saving the money for the kids she chose to live an extravagant lifestyle with the focus being herself. Best of luck to Jon and hope he can once again be a father to all of his kids.
They must’ve offered her ten million then. I remember watching a bit of their show and everyone hated her but from what I watched he was just another one of her children and he went on to continue to act like a child wearing Ed hardy and trying to be a DJ.
Hoe does he think all this garbage he is spewing is going to be good for his kids.
Didn’t want the decline of his marriage filmed, so the kids wouldn’t have to see it.
Well guess what…it was filmed, we all saw it. You were a wimp. And everything vile thing you’re saying now? Your kids can read you dumba**!
“Well I’ve quit many jobs, I can do whatever I want.’
Says it all, Jon, you cockroach. Never contributed to your kids clothing, food & shelter. But Kate is the bad parent???
Judt go away.
Even first going along with the filming seems all wrong. That woman kept you from your kids with TLC help.
Jon got alot of shit from the media and public back in the day…but i actually think hes a decent guy..kate is aunatic…one of these kids are going to write a tell all book someday
Mommie Dearest: Part II
She IS Mommie Dearest! Everything those kids do is highly controlled.
I actually just read that book for the first time last week and wow, Joan Crawford better be burning in hell. Also I think if you replaced the name Joan with Kate it could be her story. Neither one of those woman should have been blessed with children when there are people who want them but can’t have them…like me. I went through fertility treatments and than a four year waiting period before I could adopt my foster kids. Kate doesn’t know how lucky she is to have eight healthy kids. And, no, I don’t believe she was unable to conceive. I think she took those treatments because she wanted the fame that came with multiples. Read ‘Kate Gosselin: How She Fooled the World’. It IS like ‘Mommie Dearist’. You need a license to drive a car but any abusive asshole can be a parent.
Kate is a miserable person. It’s easy to see that Jon is probably spot on when he describes her as a narcissist. I always kinda got that sense from her – that what she loved MOST was the attention for herself. Everything and everyone else came second to that. Sad. Hang it up lady. Are people really watching this Kate plus date crap. Who seriously wants to date her for her personality??? Yikes!
well said T
It’s a shame all of this came out after all these years because the media portrayed him as the bad guy, that’s who I thought he was. I thought jon left kate because of how she was and left her with all those kids, then found some other lady quickly and became a dj.
All you heard from kate is complaining and how much he never did anything. I mean I understand her frustrations, she had EIGHT young kids to take care of. It is a lot of work, I’m sure. Jon was as helpful as he probably could have been with her being as controlling as she was.
I don’t mind him as a man now. I also think he is a great dad. After hearing how kate treated colin. Sending him off to that facility when all he had was adhd. That is quite sad. I hope all the kids grow up to be good spouses because they haven’t learned from the best role models. It seems some of them are trying to make the most of it. I’m also glad jon gets to speak his voice over this mess. 10 years is so long. So long to not have your kids altogether. It’s a shame it didn’t work for the kids. But I can’t blame him, no money is worth her horrible attitude.