Ben Affleck reveals what caused his separation from Jennifer Lopez in 2004
The celebrity couple began dating in 2002, and in 2004 they called off their engagement.
Ben Affleck has opened up about his relationship with Jennifer Lopez, revealing why they split nearly 20 years ago and why he doubted the two would ever try dating again.
The 49-year-old Tender Bar star opened up about his love life during an appearance on The Howard Stern Show, where he reflected on the factors that led to his breakup with Lopez in 2004.
According to Affleck, who dated Lopez from 2002 to 2004, the end of their first relationship was due in part to negative media scrutiny.
“I would say that [the media attention] was almost fifty percent [of what destroyed our relationship],” the actor stated, according to Entertainment Tonight. “The idea that people hate you and they hate you if you're with someone, and that being together is poisonous and ugly and toxic and something neither of us wants to be a part of. And 'who the hell would want to invite them to dinner?' And ‘what the hell are they doing together?’”
The couple, who met in 2002 on the set of Gigli, revealed they were engaged in 2003, before calling off their engagement a year later.
A day before their planned wedding date, the famous couple released a statement acknowledging the "excessive media attention" surrounding their upcoming nuptials and revealing their plans to postpone the ceremony.
"Due to excessive media attention surrounding our wedding, we have decided to postpone the date," they stipulated in the joint statement. "When we realized that we were seriously considering hiring three different 'decoy brides' in three different locations, we realized something was wrong."
At the time, they noted that "the spirit of what should have been the happiest day of our lives could be at risk."
Affleck shared with Stern a reflection on their separation: "I felt very hurt and I got angry and I felt like a fool." However, last June, the couple confirmed that they rekindled their relationship almost two decades later.
According to Affleck, he had some doubts about whether to re-enter a relationship with Lopez, as he explained to Stern that he was concerned about how a union with a high-profile celebrity would affect their three children, Violet, 16, Seraphina, 12, and Samuel, nine. The actor shares custody of the three with his ex-wife, Jennifer Garner.
In response to Stern's question about the attention Lopez gets and whether there was a "hesitation on your part, because you're a dad now," Affleck said, "Of course it crossed my mind. My responsibility to my children is the highest responsibility. I don't want to do anything that's painful or destructive to them if I can help it," People reported.
“I make that clear. However, I know that my life affects them,” added the father of three.
This isn't the first time Lopez and Affleck have acknowledged the pressure the media is putting on their relationship, as the actor spoke out about some of the negative coverage during an appearance on The Hollywood Reporter's podcast in January: "People were very bad with her: sexist, racist. Some ugly, violent *** was written about her in a way where, if you were to write it now, without exaggeration, you'd be fired from her for saying those things."
The singer also told People in 2016 that she and Affleck didn't "try to have a public relationship," but that it was inevitable.
“As it happens, we were together at the birth of the tabloid press, and it was like, 'Oh my God.' It was a lot of pressure,” she assured.
During the interview with Stern, The Last Duel star also spoke candidly about his marriage to Garner, which ended in 2018. The actor explained, “We had a marriage that didn't work out. This happens. He is someone I love and respect, but who he should no longer be married to.”
However, Affleck sparked backlash from fans after he also claimed that he felt "stuck" in the relationship with Garner and that it was "part of the reason" he started drinking.
