Jocelyn Wildenstein Opens Up About Financial Struggles Ahead of Upcoming Documentary: A Candid Look into Her Life

Jocelyn Wildenstein: Jocelyn Wildenstein, the reclusive socialite infamous for her extensive plastic surgery and dubbed the "Catwoman," has revealed her financial struggles ahead of an upcoming HBO documentary and potential reality TV show about her life. According to Wildenstein, she has been without any income for the past eight years after her late ex-husband's family stopped her $100 million annual divorce settlement payment.

The Swiss-born socialite, now 82, gained notoriety in the 1990s during her high-profile divorce from art-dealer Alec Wildenstein, which resulted in a staggering $2.5 billion settlement and subsequent annual payments. However, in 2015, her ex-husband's family ceased the annual payments, leaving her in a dire financial situation.

Facing financial hardships, Wildenstein decided to collaborate on a two-part docuseries and potentially a reality TV show produced by the team behind "Keeping Up With the Kardashians." The goal was to alleviate her financial strain, as she revealed her settlement has become a significant problem. Speaking to The Telegraph at a luxurious hotel in Los Angeles, she expressed her frustration over being cut off for the past eight years.

In 2018, Wildenstein filed for bankruptcy, reporting her checking account balance as " $0," despite still owning millions of dollars in assets, primarily in the form of properties. However, her three luxury apartments in Trump Towers were subsequently repossessed. She stated that to this day, she has no income whatsoever.

Wildenstein's fiancé, Lloyd Klein, a 56-year-old French-Canadian designer, mentioned that the upcoming documentary serves as her response to the public, who have scrutinized her tumultuous life and infamous plastic surgeries. Wildenstein herself admitted that she has never been public and that it goes against her nature.

Klein has even grander ambitions for Wildenstein in the media realm, envisioning a movie series based on her life. He expressed his desire to cast Jennifer Lawrence as a young Jocelyn and Remi Malik to portray Alec Wildenstein.

Throughout her public career, rumors circulated that Alec Wildenstein, known for his fondness for cats, encouraged his wife's surgeries to make her appear more feline-like. However, Alec denied these claims during an interview with Vanity Fair, stating that she was the one who wanted to change her face and that she was "crazy." Wildenstein called an end to their 20-year marriage when Alec began openly flaunting his extramarital affairs, which she found increasingly obvious and indiscreet.

According to Wildenstein, Alec orchestrated stories about her surgeries to gain an advantage in the divorce proceedings. She claimed he even hired a publicist and paid a plastic surgeon to certify that she had radically altered her face. Despite the accusations, she maintained that she never betrayed him and attributed his negative portrayal of her to his attempt to shift blame onto her appearance.

In the end, Wildenstein emerged with a favorable settlement and retained her ex-husband's last name.