Ben Affleck may have looked “stern” as he arrived separately from Jennifer Lopez at his 12-year-old son Samuel’s graduation Wednesday, and as he reportedly kept his distance from his estranged wife throughout the event.
But the 51-year-old “Argo” actor otherwise appeared to be well put-together in a three-piece suit as his marriage to Lopez continues to fall apart in the glare of global media attention. Most importantly, Affleck, who has struggled with alcohol addiction in the past, has not relapsed and started drinking again, despite a report this week suggesting otherwise, sources told In Touch Weekly.
It also appears from another In Touch Weekly report that a “healthy” and focused Affleck is the one pressing for the divorce. His “mind is made up,” a source said. “The divorce is happening,” the source added, as the filmmaker is telling friends that “he’s looking forward to the next chapter. He wants a life with serenity and peace, and escaping this roller coaster will be a relief.”
Affleck just wants to handle the divorce “as sensitively” as possible and “do this in a civilized way and make sure the split is as smooth as possible for the kids,” the source said. Affleck’s three children, 18, 15, and 12, have bonded with Lopez’s two 16-year-old twins since the two rekindled their famous romance after 17 years apart and married in 2022.
Affleck also wants to spare his mega-star wife as much pain as possible. “The last thing he wants to do is hurt J.Lo.,” the source told In Touch. “He still loves and respects her.”
Lopez, on the other hand, “clinging to the possibility” that they can work things out and has begged Affleck “to give their marriage a second chance,” the source said.
This source also confirmed widespread speculation that Affleck and his influencer wife “couldn’t find common ground” over how much of their private lives to share as two famous people in a high-profile marriage.
Or, as TMZ founder Harvey Levin said, “he hates publicity and she loves publicity.” There may be “passion” between them but their lives and temperaments “don’t mesh” in the day-to-day way that’s necessary to maintain a relationship, Levin said.
Affleck already has moved out of the massive $60 million mansion they purchased together for cash just a year ago, and is staying in a $100,000-a-month rental mansion in Brentwood, just two blocks from the home of his ex-wife Jennifer Garner, the Daily Mail reported. He and Lopez have quietly put the Beverly Hills mansion on the market, as sources told People this week that neither was ever really crazy about it.
“Ben never liked the house. It’s too far away from his kids,” a source close to Lopez told People. As for Lopez, “the house is way too big for her,” the source said.
But even as Affleck “wants to have all their ducks in a row so there’s no messy court battle,” and Lopez is “clinging” to the hope of a reconciliation, the two also are trying to put on a somewhat united front for the benefit of the children — and for the paparazzi who have been following them over the past month.
Lopez, for instance, still attended Samuel’s graduation with her child Emme. As if she were on the red carpet at a movie premiere, the singer and actor wore “a big grin” as she entered the school event, wearing a simple but stunning short beige dress with scalloped hem, Page Six said.
But Page Six and other outlets also noted that Lopez arrived separately from Affleck, who attended the ceremony with his mother. The estranged couple also couldn’t muster an air-kiss greeting, as they had on June 2 when they arrived separately at Samuel’s basketball game in Santa Monica
“It was so awkward,” an observer told In Touch. “They didn’t show any real affection like a normal married couple, but they had these big smiles on their faces, like they were faking it for the cameras.”
But that’s what they are doing — faking it for the cameras, sources said.
That’s especially the case for Lopez, who also is dealing with a major professional setback. She abruptly canceled her planned summer “This is Me … Now” tour amid reports of dismal ticket sales and lukewarm reviews for her album and for her self-financed documentaries, all of which paid tribute to her romance with Affleck. One insider told In Touch that Lopez, “a hopeless romantic,” is “falling to pieces” because “she’s lost everything.”
Whether Lopez is truly “falling apart,” the “die is cast” and she and Affleck are heading for divorce, TMZ reported this week.
“There were so many warning signs,” TMZ’s Levin said. It’s just a matter of when Affleck and Lopez want to time the announcement. But in this regard, Lopez may still be hoping to maintain an upper hand.
The Daily Mail reported Thursday that Lopez is thinking of timing the announcement for a Friday, or that she may more strategically wait until she can pair it with news of a Vegas residency or another commercial tie-in. “She’s a very smart cookie,” a source told the Daily Mail.