Ben Affleck has been in lot of hot water of late. While promoting his upcoming film The Tender Bar, he opened up to Howard Stern about his struggles with alcoholism regarding his ex-wife Jennifer Garner. But it wasn’t the praise for the mother of his three kids, nor the lengthy reflection about his own issues, that spread like wildfire. Rather, it was the actor’s comments about feeling “trapped” at that time inspiring his turning to alcohol as a coping mechanism, which ultimately sparked a huge backlash online surrounding the idea that he was blaming Garner for his drinking problem. Subsequent reports even suggested that Affleck’s new/old paramour Jennifer Lopez was upset about what he said. However, JLo has since decided to speak out publicly about the situation.
Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck were the celebrity “It” couple of the early 2000s, so they know a thing or two about facing down massive fan and media interest in their relationship’s ins and outs. They broke up in 2003 but reignited their romance earlier this year, and JLo apparently isn’t letting all the speculative rumors fly anymore saying she felt some kind of way about Affleck’s perception of his marriage to Jennifer Garner. In fact, the Shotgun Wedding actress refuted the claims outright to People, saying,
This story is simply not true. It is not how I feel. I couldn’t have more respect for Ben as a father, a co-parent, and a person.
The “I’m Real” singer is keeping it real, then, when it comes to Ben Affleck. Considering she isn’t someone known for holding back when she wants her opinions out there, Lopez would have likely gone public herself if she did have pointed feelings about it in any direction.
The Last Duel writer/actor had to respond to the backlash himself recently, saying that after initially doing the interview, he was “thrilled” because he got to talk about “struggling with real things.” But Affleck lamented that a lengthy, in-depth conversation was whittled down to “the exact opposite” of what he said and made him out to be the “most insensitive, stupid, awful guy.”
Succession star Jeremy Strong faced a similar issue after the long-form New Yorker profile about him went viral and sparked a serious debate about the perception of actors. However, in Ben Affleck’s mea culpa, he wanted to make it clear that he absolutely doesn’t blame Jennifer Garner for his alcoholism.
As far as Ben Affleck is concerned, some marriages just aren’t meant to be for all parties involved, including the kids. It might just be in the cards, though, for ex-fiancés Affleck and JLo. The pop singer has even shared that she would definitely get married again – which would technically be her fourth time – a sentiment which Affleck has seemed to echo.
Yet, clearly, Jenny from the Block has been around this particular block before. Bennifer 2.0 weathered the current snafu as best they could and can hopefully see more happy days in the future – if their schedules allow it, anyway.