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Jennifer Lopez Says the Media Frenzy Around Her Relationship With Ben Affleck in 2002 Caused ‘PTSD’
Jennifer Lopez recently revealed that her first time around the block with Ben Affleck had lasting effects.
“We both have PTSD,” Jennifer, 54, told Variety in an interview published on Wednesday, December 21. The “Jenny from the Block” singer added that it was a result from the intense scrutiny from media the couple faced when they went public with their romance the first time in the early 2000s.
However, she continued to say that she and Ben, 51, have matured over the years, “We’re older now. We’re wiser. We also know what’s important, what’s really important in life, and it’s not so much what other people think. It’s about being true to who you are.”
The couple, which fans labeled “Bennifer,” met on the set of the universally panned film Gigli in 2002. By November of the same year, Ben had popped the question. The Hustlers star gushed over the actor in an interview with Diane Sawyer shortly after he proposed and described him as “brilliantly smart … Loving. Charming. Affectionate.”
Ben and J. Lo were notoriously hounded by paparazzi and even postponed their nuptials due to the media frenzy. The “Let’s Get Loud” spoke about the problems that came with the spotlight in an interview with People in 2016.
“We didn’t try to have a public relationship,” Jennifer explained. “We just happened to be together at the birth of the tabloids, and it was like ‘Oh my God.’ It was just a lot of pressure.”
Eventually, the constant media coverage caused the pair to officially call it quits in 2004. Ben went on to marry Jennifer Garner in 2005, and they share three kids together. However, they divorced in 2018 after 13 years together.
Despite their split in 2004, Ben and J. Lo remained in contact over the years, and he even raved about her acting skills in her film Hustlers during an interview with The New York Times.
“She should have been nominated. She’s the real thing,” Ben said in the 2020 interview. “I keep in touch periodically with her and have a lot of respect for her. How awesome is it that she had her biggest hit movie at 50? That’s f–king baller.”
After J. Lo’s split from Aaron Rodriguez in 2021, she and Ben began spending time together and eventually they rekindled their romance. By July of that same year, the couple had gone Instagram official with Jennifer sharing a photo of her and Ben kissing.
Ben proposed again in April 2022, and they officially tied the knot in July of that same year.
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