Arnold Schwarzenegger believes his story with Maria Shriver will continue "forever".

The 76-year-old actor and Maria, 67, finalised their divorce back in 2021 - but Schwarzenegger insists that she'll always be a big part of his life.

In his new motivational book, 'Be Useful: Seven Tools for Life', Schwarzenegger shares: "We never left the [first] chapter. Because remember, it’s not like we had a feud. We didn’t have a fight. It’s just my f*** up, right?

"She said, 'Okay, this is what it is,' and then she decided to make a split, so it was her decision. But the fact is, we always made it very clear that the kids should not suffer because of that."

The Hollywood star and Maria split after it emerged that Schwarzenegger fathered a son with Mildred Baena, the family's long-time housekeeper.

However, the former couple - who have Katherine, 33, Christina, 32, Patrick, 30, and Christopher, 26, together - have continued to spend a lot of time together since then.

Schwarzenegger said: "So everything is kind of just as if we're together but we have separate lives. And she has her things, her relationship, I have mine, but we always communicate about the kids, about the holidays, about birthday parties and Mother’s Day parties and Christmas.

"My chapter with Maria will continue on forever. Even though it’s a different relationship, there’s no reason for me to feel anything other than love for her."

The actor - who married Maria in 1986 - previously described their split as his biggest "biggest failure" in life.

He told Howard Stern: "That was, without any doubt, the biggest setback and the biggest failure. You can't point the finger at anyone else."