Kim Kardashian's Marriage: Publicity Stunt, Plain Pathetic, or Both?

May 21: Kim Kardashian attends the 16th Annual Cosmetic Executive Women Beauty Awards at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York. (AP)

Seventy-two days after tying-the-knot in an over-the-top, self-proclaimed “it was like we were in heaven” wedding, Kim Kardashian has filed for divorce from her NBA star husband, Kris Humphries.

But Humphries claims he was blindsided by the divorce filing, and told TMZ he still is "committed to this marriage and everything this covenant represents.” So now it's Kardashian whose reputation could be in biggest the trouble, with many questioning whether she got married just because of all the money she could make from it.

The reality television sensation reportedly scored deep discounts and freebies for the August 20 affair in exchange for promoting the products – including her 20.5 carat wedding ring. E! Entertainment aired a two-part special on the occasion, the couple entered into a high-priced deal with People Magazine for the exclusive wedding photos, and then cashed-in with an Us Weekly exclusive from their post-nuptial getaway.

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When all was said and done, Kardashian is believed to have earned $18 million from the occasion – which comes out to about $250,000 per day of not-so-wedded bliss.

Not. Too. Shabby.

“Many people will feel used—from the media to the public. And considering her marriage can be counted more easily in days, it smacks of a stunt,” crisis management expert Glenn Selig on The Publicity Agency told FOX411’s Pop Tarts column. “It will, without a doubt, hurt her brand because people will feel like they’ve been played and duped.”

“There’s a good chance that because of the success she has had, she’s become sloppy, feeling like everything she touches turns to gold,” Selig added. “It seems hard to believe that the marriage was for real given the fact that it ended so quickly. And she made so much money on it.”

On Monday, Kardashian released a statement confirming that after “careful consideration,” she decided to end the nuptials, and that while she had hoped the marriage would “last forever, sometimes things don’t work out as planned.”

But the reality star didn't use the typically emotionally-draining process of a divorce stop her from making bank. Kardashian spent the weekend glamming up with red hair and an uber-sexy dress as “Poison Ivy” while hosting a Midori-sponsored Halloween party at Lavo in New York City, and is heading to Australia this week to launch her handbag line, before continuing on to Atlanta for an acting role in Tyler Perry’s ironically-titled forthcoming film, “The Marriage Counselor.”

“The Kim Kardashian-Kris Humphries marriage was always a business deal, going in and will prove to be one, going out,” Debra Opri, one of Hollywood's leading divorce trial lawyers, told Pop Tarts. “Look at the timing. They planned the wedding in world record time to occur during the NBA's off-season, sold their wedding to the highest bidder (People Magazine) and timed the broadcast 'unveil' to garner skyrocketing ratings. Like everything the Kardashians’ do, the marriage was strategically planned, from start to finish."

Another Kardashian insider isn’t surprised by the swirling rumors that it was all a strategically planned affair. “She made a sex tape, did Playboy for money and now it seems a wedding for money,” the insider told us. “Where is the line drawn?”

A rep for Kardashian did not respond for comment.

But Gene Grabowski of Levick Strategic Communications said that the divorce could actually enhance Kim's brand, and isn’t likely to do any real long-term damage as she wasn’t taken particularly seriously in the first place.

“Kim’s quick divorce enhances her brand because she’s all about being outrageous and over the top. The divorce keeps Kim in the public eye and guarantees her another week of cover stories,” he said. “Kim isn’t taken seriously by anyone. Her life, like that of Paris Hilton or Britney Spears, is a curiosity that gives everyday people something shocking to talk about at work, at parties or at the hair dresser. And it’s that surreal, vicarious, even reckless life that makes her image so marketable among young people who wouldn’t dare behave that way, but who are excited by the idea of doing so.”

Deidre Behar contributed to this report.