It's hardly going to ingratiate him with his estranged wife, but it may not surprise her: when Arnold Schwarzenegger's scandalous affair hit the headlines, he believed that if his marriage to Maria Shriver broke down, he would find himself a "20-year-old honey".
The admission is part of explosive revelations that detail the former California Governor's reaction to the demise of his 25-year marriage. His relationship crumbled after Shriver learnt of his secret relationship with his housekeeper and the couple's illegitimate child.
Newsweek reports that the Terminator star allegedly refused to attempt to work at saving the marriage, and when news of the extra-marital affair and lovechild broke, Arnie reportedly told a friend: "I have the money, the power, and the plane, and I will have the friends."
But it is perhaps his apparent refusal to comprehend the gravity of his affair that is most alarming. "I think things will work out OK with Maria, but if they don’t, I’m getting me a 20-year-old honey", the 65-year-old is said to have told his neighbour.
Writing for the magazine, Laurence Leamer details the star's odd relationship with sex, describing intimacy with women as a "wilful assertion on the world".
Leamer describes a man who, when it comes to sex, "takes everything he wants to take" - and suggests that it was this nature that led to his clandestine and long-term affair with Guatemalan maid, Mildred Baena.
Leamer, who claims that he interviewed Schwarzenegger but was not allowed to quote him directly, said that the 'Governator' chose to keep Baena close to him so that she would not be tempted to divulge their sordid secret.
The deception came to a head in January 2011, when Shriver is said to have confronted Schwarzenegger. Her housekeeper's 13-year-old son Joseph Baena, it transpired, was fathered by her husband - news that confimed what many onlookers had long suspected, given his tell-tale looks.
Shunning emotional pain, the actor is said to have not understood why Shriver could not forgive and forget. He refused to return to couples' therapy after just one session, writes Leamer - a move that belies his apparent loner nature.
A longtime friend of Schwarzenegger's, who is reportedly one of the actor's many alienated friends, told the magazine: "Arnold’s always been alone ... It’s just that it’s more obvious, and maybe now even he recognises something of his fate."
Life has certainly about-turned for the one-time Hollywood hero. As another friend told Leamer: "Arnold is up there by himself in his mansion all alone with his pictures and souvenirs of a career ... He’s like Citizen Kane."
And while divorce proceedings grind on, his affair seems to remain anything but forgiven. His son's Twitter name has been changed to Patrick Shriver while his daughters are allegedly "suspicious" of him.
The muscle-bound star is now trying to reignite his all-star persona and has an autobiography due for release on 1 October. A cameo appearance in The Expendables 2 may fade into obscurity as the incendiary character revelations stymy a comeback.
"I'll be back" looks less likely than ever.
