Are Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez heading for a divorce? Photo / Getty Images
Are Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez heading for a divorce? Photo / Getty Images
New reports have claimed Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck’s young marriage is on ‘shaky ground’, with the pair reportedly looking at the option of divorce. With the rumour mill in overdrive, the Herald looks at when claims of a split first surfaced and why.
From photos of Affleck without his wedding ring, to multiple solo outings and even claims Affleck branded the relationship a “fever dream” that happened only because of an unstable mental state, the rumour mill has gone into overdrive about the couple, infamously known as Bennifer.
Having first met on the set of the American romantic crime comedy Gigli in the early 2000s, the pair officially began dating in 2002, and were even engaged to be married until their separation in 2004 — of which Lopez later confessed was because they “crumbled under the pressure”.
Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez in 2002. Photo / Getty Images
In the 20 years they spent apart, Lopez was married to Marc Anthony between 2004 and 2014 with the pair welcoming their now-16-year-old twins, Max and Emme. Meanwhile, Affleck married Jennifer Garner in 2005 and welcomed three children: Violet, 18, Seraphina, 15, and Samuel, 11, before separating in 2018.
While Lopez and Affleck didn’t make things official again until 2021, they caught the attention of fans in 2015 during a flirty exchange at the Oscars. Affleck reportedly “whispered in her ear” while, to the delight of fans, Lopez playfully “swatted his arm”.
Nothing came of the exchange until 2021, when the pair made headlines throughout the world with their reunion, going on to marry in 2022. For the past two years, the world has been witness to loved-up red-carpet appearances and gushing interviews — including with the New Zealand Herald, where Lopez spoke about her love for Affleck, confessing, “I felt like, ‘Oh, wait, some things do last forever’. True love does exist. Oh, holy s***.”
While the two may have co-written and co-starred in the love-filled documentary, it now seems Bennifer 2.0 could be ending.
She confessed: “Some things do last forever. True love does exist.” Continuing to say that during her life she had had experiences that left her “really hurt” and “really angry” and got through them with the help of her husband.
“I credit this a bit to Ben because he helped me feel that it was okay and that I was safe and that I was loved and that I could look at those parts of myself that I wasn’t so proud of, of things that I had gone through and accept them.”
February 27:
Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez at the premiere of their documentary, This Is Me ... Now: A Love Story. Photo / AP
Once the couple’s documentary was released, a scene revealed an honest conversation where Affleck said he asked Lopez not to put their relationship on social media — he later compromised on his request.
“Getting back together, I said, ‘Listen, one of the things I don’t want is a relationship on social media’,” he says. “Then I sort of realiszed it’s not a fair thing to ask. It’s sort of like, you’re gonna marry a boat captain and you go, ‘Well, I don’t like the water’.”
Lopez adds, “I don’t think [Ben] is very comfortable with me doing all of this. But he loves me, he knows I’m an artist, and he’s gonna support me in every way he can because he knows you can’t stop me from making the music I made … he doesn’t want to stop me. But that doesn’t mean he’s comfortable being the muse.”
March 30:
Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez are going through a rough patch in their marriage. Photo / Getty Images
All is well in Bennifer’s land — that is, until the end of March, when the couple were photographed together for what would end up being the last time in over a month.
It came just days after sources claimed the pair were butting heads over the purchase of their impressive California mansion. Allegedly spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on inspection fees, the source told the New York Post, “Ben is fighting for it. He really wants this house,” the insider claimed. The Batman actor “loves” the location of the property but despite being in escrow, Lopez reportedly isn’t sold on the eight-bedroom, 14-bathroom property.
After their appearance on March 30, People magazinereported Affleck returned to Los Angeles for the filming of a sequel to his 2016 film, The Accountant. Lopez remained in NYC to film her upcoming movie, Kiss of the Spider Woman.
The outlet reported that as well as the defining clue of the singer and actress wearing her wedding ring, a source claimed there was nothing suspicious about Lopez’s solo outing because Affleck was still in LA filming.
May 12:
After a lengthy stint in New York, Lopez returned to Los Angeles where she celebrated Mother’s Day with her two children.
Despite being in the same city, a source close to Lopez told People they “did not celebrate Mother’s Day together” and have been living apart in recent months.
Only two days later, TMZ reported the singer had been for a second solo outing, this time looking at luxurious Beverly Hills homes with her long-time friend and producing partner, Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas.
It was unclear whether the singer was house hunting for herself. Lopez and Affleck purchased a US$60 million ($98.4m) home in the area last year after two years of hunting for the perfect home.
An insider later told US Weekly that Lopez had in fact been house hunting, but for an investment property and not for herself.
May 15:
Ben Affleck has hit a breaking point with Jennifer Lopez and has "moved out" of the home they share, a source exclusively tells In Touch. https://t.co/rRIYpmuxKl
“The writing is on the wall — it’s over,” the insider alleged. They added Affleck has moved out of their US$60m home, and “they’re headed for a divorce — and for once, [Ben’s] not to blame!”
“He’s focusing on his work and his kids now. Ben already moved out, and they’ll likely have to sell the dream house they spent two years searching for,” the source said. “They’ll never stop loving each other, but she can’t control him, and he can’t change her. There’s no way it could have lasted.”
A source told Us Weekly Affleck was no longer living in the couple’s home and had moved out “several weeks ago”.
May 16:
Ben Affleck's Wedding Ring Is Back, Jen Garner Visits Amid J Lo Marriage Drama | Click to read more 👇 https://t.co/1JSiHipO9f
Daily Mail reported Affleck was seen without his wedding ring several times over the past couple of days, including while attending his son’s basketball game with his ex-wife, Jennifer Garner.
Despite the noticeable absence, by Sunday the outlet reported the star had his ring back on. While arriving at his US$100,000-a-month ($163,072) rental he could be seen reaching out of the car, sporting a silver band on his ring finger.
A source told US Weekly while the couple have not separated, they “are having issues in their marriage”.
The post said “you cannot build a healthy relationship with somebody” who “lacks integrity and emotional safety”, “doesn’t respect your time”, has no “communication skills” and doesn’t possess a strong sense of who they are.
The post’s creator said while the initial images were shared in March, Lopez engaged with the post on only Thursday.
— Jennifer Lopez Updates (@lopez_updates) May 17, 2024
Affleck and Lopez were seen together in public for the first time last week after more than a month of solo outings. The couple attended a school production for Fin, Affleck’s 15-year-old child, who uses the pronoun “they”.
Speaking to Perez Hilton, a source said “nothing would have stopped them coming together for the kids” and “the marriage drama comes second”.
“They are putting on a united front. Jen showed up with Emme to support Fin. Emme’s super-attached to Fin, so it’s only natural that Jen, no matter what she’s going through with Ben, was there.”
The source said there is a strain on the A-listers’ relationship, adding: “They just have very different approaches when it comes to media attention. Ben hates all attention and it makes him very uncomfortable. Jennifer has always had a different approach.”
Despite Affleck reportedly admiring his wife’s work ethic and industry success, the source claimed always sharing his life with the public can “cause stress” for the Air actor and “after a while it causes tension in the relationship”.
“He is more introspective and private. She likes to open her heart to her fans and to the world. This makes them considerably different, and it has been difficult in the day-to-day relationship.”
Lopez was seen attending the Los Angeles premiere of her movie Atlas. While she attended the event solo, with Affleck reportedly tied up with filming, the star was seen wearing her wedding ring.
Jennifer Lopez at the premiere of her Netflix film, Atlas, in Los Angeles. Photo / Getty Images
May 21:
A source speaks to Page Six claiming Affleck has called his relationship with Lopez a “fever dream”, alleging the actor is ready to end his marriage to the singer.
According to the source, Affleck has “come to his senses” after falling madly in love with Lopez, and feels his head is “clear” now.
“He feels like the last two years was just a fever dream, and he’s come to his senses now and understands there is just no way this is going to work.”
Elsewhere, a report from Daily Mail claimed Lopez has been confiding in Affleck’s ex-wife, Jennifer Garner, in an effort to save her marriage.
The source told the news outlet, “JLo has been confiding in Jen because she knows that she is one of the only people in the world who would understand what she is going through.
“She has been through it with the same man herself and although the circumstances were quite different, it is still the same man and they both dealt with some of the same issues.”
Ben Affleck and actress Jennifer Garner remain close after their divorce. Photo / AP
Garner, who is dating Josh Miller, was seen leaving Affleck’s alleged rental property over the weekend. A source claimed she had spoken to the actor in an effort to help save the couple’s marriage because Garner believes Lopez is “one of the only women who can get through to Ben and keep him from jumping off the deep end with his addiction”.
Affleck sought professional help for his drinking in 2001 and checked into rehab, where he lived a sober life for many years. However, he suffered multiple setbacks over the years and returned to rehab in 2017, 2018 and 2019, while navigating his separation from Garner.
Speaking to ABC News in 2020, he explained: “I was sober for a couple of years and then I thought: ‘You know, I want to just drink like a normal person and I want to have wine at dinner’. And I was able to for about eight years.”
Affleck has since returned to his sober ways, with his children a driving force for his choice. He told the New York Times later that year that fatherhood had taught him to be sober “during these formative years for my kids”.
Lillie Rohan is a NZ Herald reporter covering lifestyle and entertainment stories who joined the Heraldin 2020. She specialises in all things relationships and dating, Kiwi celebs we can’t help but love, and TV shows you simply cannot miss out on.
