Famous Hollywood couple Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez—sometimes referred to as “Bennifer”—are apparently doing what they can to ease the difficulty of their divorce for their children.
According to a source with knowledge of the couple, the two actors came together for the first time in a long time to have a “fun lunch” with their kids on Saturday September 14. They gathered at the Polo Lounge in the Beverly Hills Hotel so they “could hang out” with their kids. The source described 55-year-old Lopez as “trying to be friendly” with her 52-year-old ex-husband.
Four of the couple’s five children were at the lunch, although they do not share any kids from their own brief marriage. Emme and Max are Lopez’s 16-year-old twins. Their father is Marc Anthony, another ex-husband of “The Wedding Planner” star. Affleck has three children with his former spouse, fellow actress Jennifer Garner.
The two youngest, 15-year-old Fin and 12-year-old Sam, were at the lunch on Saturday. Their older sister, Violent, is a freshman at Yale University, so she was not at the gathering. According to the source, Lopez is the one who is trying to avoid being “selfish” amid the divorce, saying that “her priority” are “happy kids.”
The children reportedly get along well and “have fun together,” making it easier to bring them together even with the split. Previously, a source had revealed that Affleck was struggling immensely with the divorce. He reportedly went through an emotional breakdown with his good friend Matt Damon, saying that he was “jealous” of his “Good Will Hunting” partner’s healthy relationship with his wife and daughters.
Affleck apparently told Damon that he would “hibernate” through this time “if he could.” He was noticeably absent from the recent premiere of “Unstoppable,” his latest film he co-produced with Damon—and which stars his now ex-wife. The “Bourne” actor reportedly refused to speak with Lopez about Affleck during the premiere’s after party, noting that he would “always have Ben’s back.”
Lopez filed for divorce on August 20 of this year—the two-year anniversary of their Georgia wedding ceremony. The couple eloped and officially married in Las Vegas, Nevada in July 2022. The union of the two lovebirds came over 20 years after their first attempt. In the early 2000s, the two met while working on the film “Gigli.” They were engaged for a time but called it off before the wedding.
Since then, they were married to different people and had separate children. After respective divorces, they reunited in 2021, thrilling fans—and appearing elated themselves—when they finally married a year later. But the marriage was short-lived and dissolved under “irreconcilable differences” cited by Lopez in the divorce filing.
The two are reportedly “still moving forward” with the separation, despite the positive outing with their children. They are said to be “amicably” working through the “financial details” of the split. In her filing, Lopez requested that they pay their own legal fees without spousal support. She is also seeking to change her last name back to Lopez, after having switched it to Affleck two years ago.
