They had the "Greatest Love Story Never Told"... until Jennifer Lopez decided to share all of Ben Affleck's secret love letters with the world.
Category
✨
PeopleTranscript
00:00They had the greatest love story never told, until Jennifer Lopez decided to share all
00:05of Ben Affleck's secret love letters with the world.
00:08Jennifer Lopez immediately fell hard for Ben Affleck when they met in 2002 while filming
00:13the movie Gigli.
00:15Lopez was married at the time to Chris Judd, but her instant chemistry with Affleck was
00:19obvious.
00:20And it wasn't long before she and Judd divorced, and she and Affleck went public with their
00:23romance.
00:24In 2016, she told People,
00:26"...I felt like, OK, this is it."
00:28The dawn of the frenzied paparazzi and tabloid era meant that the couple was subject to incessant
00:33media attention, and soon the iconic nickname, Bennifer, was born.
00:37From star-studded red carpet appearances to Affleck's iconic appearance in her Jenny from
00:41the Block music video, the public couldn't get enough of Bennifer's romance.
00:46It wasn't long before Affleck and Lopez decided to get hitched.
00:49In a whirlwind move, the couple got engaged just months after their romance first reached
00:53the tabloids.
00:55Lopez revealed the news in a November 2002 interview with Diane Sawyer, revealing that
00:59Affleck popped the question with a pink solitaire diamond reportedly worth a whopping $2.5 million
01:05at the time.
01:06"...So he's been the one?"
01:09While Lopez initially told Sawyer she thought Affleck was a typical Hollywood bad boy, she
01:13changed her mind, describing him as,
01:15"...brilliantly smart, loving, charming, affectionate.
01:18And I just admire him in every way."
01:21As for Affleck, he admitted that his strong friendship with Lopez set the tone for their
01:24incredible bond.
01:26In 2003, he told Vanity Fair,
01:28"...because she was married, there was no thought of a romantic relationship, so that
01:32created the opportunity to get to know each other without any of the falseness that goes
01:35with courtship, because you're trying to make a good impression.
01:38I didn't try to change anything about myself, and she didn't either."
01:42The media circus that surrounded Bennifer contributed to their first split.
01:46While the couple had planned to get married in the fall of 2003, they decided to postpone
01:50the date due to all the tabloid attention.
01:52They said in a statement at the time,
01:54"...when we found ourselves seriously contemplating hiring three separate decoy brides at three
01:59different locations, we realized that something was awry.
02:02We felt what should have been a joyful and sacred day could be spoiled for us, our families,
02:06and our friends."
02:07"...Oh my God, there's paparazzi right there!"
02:10"...That's a real f----- window into a day in the life."
02:13Their relationship seemed to only deteriorate after the fact, as the couple broke up not
02:17long after in January of 2004.
02:19In a January 2022 interview with Apple Music, Lopez blamed their split on the lack of maturity,
02:25admitting,
02:26"...we weren't ready to deal with and look at each other and go, what we have is real.
02:29We need to buckle down.
02:30We need to do some work.
02:31We just weren't there yet."
02:33Lopez said that the breakup was one of the hardest things she ever went through, saying,
02:37"...it was the biggest heartbreak of my life, and I honestly felt like I was gonna die,
02:40and it sent me on a spiral for the next 18 years where I couldn't get it right."
02:44"...You went into hyper gear, and I went into hyper gear."
02:48"...But not together."
02:49"...But not together."
02:50After their fairytale wedding wasn't meant to be, Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck found
02:54love with other people.
02:56Affleck started dating his former co-star Jennifer Garner in 2004, and the two tied
03:00the knot in 2005.
03:02Garner and Affleck went on to have three children together, their daughters, Violet and Serafina,
03:07and their son, Samuel.
03:08As for Lopez, she married her longtime music collaborator Mark Antony in 2004.
03:13Lopez and Antony had fraternal twins, Emmy and Max, in 2008, and she became a stepmother
03:18to his four other kids from previous relationships.
03:20Sadly, however, neither marriage was to last.
03:24Affleck and Garner separated in 2015 and finally divorced in 2018, though they reportedly remain
03:29amicable.
03:30Affleck told People in 2020,
03:31"...When you have children with somebody, you're connected to them forever, and I'm
03:35very lucky she is the mother of my children.
03:37I'm very grateful and respectful of her."
03:39Mark Antony and Lopez's breakup was made public in 2011, with Antony filing for divorce
03:44a year later and listing irreconcilable differences as the motive for the split.
03:48Their divorce was finalized in 2014, and the two remained co-collaborators in the music
03:53industry.
03:54Antony joked to Extra TV,
03:55"...If you want to get along with a woman, just get divorced."
03:58"...These things happen.
03:59These things happen."
04:02After running into each other a few times over the years, former baseball star Alex
04:06Rodriguez finally asked Lopez on a date in 2017.
04:10It seemed like a perfect match.
04:12A-Rod told Vanity Fair,
04:13"...We are very much twins.
04:15We're both Leos.
04:16We're both from New York.
04:17We're both Latino and about 20 other things."
04:19J-Lo and A-Rod got engaged in 2019 during a trip to the Bahamas, but never ended up
04:24getting married, and eventually broke up in 2021.
04:27They released a statement that said,
04:29"...We have realized we are better as friends and look forward to remaining so."
04:34Following his 2015 split with Garner, he dated a number of women.
04:38In 2017, he began an up-and-down relationship with producer Lindsay Shookus.
04:43The next year, the two took a break, during which time Affleck was seen out on the town
04:47with Playboy model Shauna Sexton.
04:49It apparently wasn't serious, though, as he got back together with Shookus before they
04:53finally split for good in 2019.
04:56Affleck also had a brief relationship with Katy Cherry, whom he met in 2019.
05:00The pair dated casually for about three months before calling it quits.
05:04Affleck moved on with his Deepwater co-star Ana de Armas in the spring of 2020, with whom
05:08he spent a majority of that year's COVID-19 pandemic, but they broke up in 2021.
05:13A source told People,
05:14"...She broke it off.
05:16Their relationship was complicated.
05:17Ana doesn't want to be Los Angeles-based and Ben obviously has to since his kids live in
05:21Los Angeles."
05:23To the amazement of fans, Bennifer came back in full force in July of 2021, when, in celebration
05:30of her 52nd birthday, Lopez shared a steamy photo on Instagram of her kissing Affleck.
05:35The pair walked their first red carpet together in nearly two decades a few months later for
05:39the premiere of Affleck's film The Last Duel.
05:42They continued to appear together at Hollywood events, not to mention the Met Gala, and it
05:46seemed like the two had hit a home run their second time around.
05:49In 2022, Lopez told People,
05:51"...I feel so lucky and happy and proud to be with him.
05:55It's a beautiful love story that we got a second chance."
05:57While their first chance at romance took a turn due to the insane media circus that
06:02surrounded them, J.Lo felt that the two had a different approach to their rekindled love
06:06affair, saying,
06:07"...We're older now.
06:08We're smarter.
06:09We have more experience.
06:10We're at different places in our lives.
06:11We have kids now, and we have to be very conscious of those things.
06:14We're so protective, because it is such a beautiful time for all of us."
06:19Jennifer Lopez got engaged for the sixth time in 2022, but who's counting?
06:23The star announced the news on her On the J.Lo newsletter that Affleck had asked her
06:28to marry him with a giant diamond in April of that year.
06:31In a video, Lopez shows off the sparkler on her ring finger while listening to her song
06:35Dear Ben.
06:36She detailed how her man popped the question, saying,
06:39"...Ben came in and he got down on one knee and he said some things that I'll never forget.
06:43And then he pulled out a ring and he said, Will you marry me?"
06:46Lopez revealed that Affleck got her a green diamond, which she said was her favorite color,
06:51and one that brought her good luck.
06:53Lopez called it,
06:54"...the most perfect moment."
06:56Lopez and Affleck tied the knot in a surprise Las Vegas wedding just a few months after
07:00getting engaged.
07:01The singer detailed the special day to People, revealing that their children acted as witnesses
07:05during the nuptials.
07:06It's a beautiful outcome that this has happened in this way at this time in our lives where
07:10we can really appreciate and celebrate each other and respect each other.
07:14She also reflected on how their unique love story came full circle, saying,
07:18We always did, but we have even more of an appreciation because we know that life can
07:22take you in different directions."
07:24About a month later, the couple celebrated their marriage with a separate ceremony in
07:28Georgia, amongst their closest friends and family members.
07:31The event took place on Affleck's nearly 90-acre property outside of Savannah, with Lopez dazzling
07:36down the aisle in a Ralph Lauren gown.
07:38After they said,
07:39"...I do," for the second time, the pair jetted off to Italy to enjoy their honeymoon around
07:43Lake Como and Milan.
07:44A source revealed that the couple remained low-key during their getaway, keeping in tune
07:48with Affleck's more private lifestyle.
07:50The source said,
07:51"...they just queued up for ice cream like everyone else and wandered into shops.
07:55They acted normally, even if they had bodyguards with them."
07:58The couple started living together in January of 2023, with Lopez revealing the news in
08:03an interview with Today, saying,
08:05"...we moved in together, the kids moved in together, so it's been like a really kind
08:08of emotional transition, but at the same time, all your dreams coming true.
08:13It's just been a phenomenal year."
08:14Not long after, the singer revealed she and her beau got matching tattoos declaring their
08:19love for one another.
08:20Lopez posted a series of photos on Instagram, including shots of their similar ink designs,
08:25along with a caption that read,
08:26"...commitment.
08:27Happy Valentine's Day, my love."
08:29Lopez's tattoo was placed on her ribcage and featured an infinity design with an arrow
08:33through it, with what appeared to be her and Affleck's names written.
08:37Affleck's tattoo design featured two arrows crossing each other with the letters J and
08:41B.
08:42In May of 2023, the pair purchased an over $60 million home together.
08:46The Beverly Hills mansion came with a 12-car garage, a pool and hot tub, basketball and
08:51pickleball courts, a dozen rooms, 24 bathrooms, and incredible mountain views.
08:57The perfect place to build a long life together, right?
09:01Well…
09:03Trouble appeared to start brewing in Affleck's and Lopez's relationship around May 2024,
09:08when the couple hadn't been photographed side-by-side in over a month.
09:12The couple was seen together at Affleck's daughter Violet's graduation ceremony later
09:15that month, but it wasn't long before tensions came to a head.
09:19By late June, Affleck was seen moving his stuff out of their shared home and a source
09:23revealed to People that he was staying at a rental nearby.
09:26In August, an insider told People that the couple was going their separate ways, adding,
09:30"...Jennifer is trying to find a new home to start fresh."
09:33Later that month, J.Lo filed for divorce from Affleck, two years to the day from when they
09:38had tied the knot in Georgia.
09:40The singer named irreconcilable differences as the reason for the split and filed without
09:44a lawyer.
09:45Reports suggested that there seemed to be disagreements about how much should be made
09:49public about their love affair.
09:50In her 2024 documentary, The Greatest Love Story Never Told, Lopez revealed intimate
09:55letters that Affleck had written to her in the early days of their romance.
09:59But Affleck wasn't thrilled about it.
10:01Lopez revealed in the film,
10:02"...I don't think he's very comfortable with me doing all of this, but he loves me.
10:06He knows I'm an artist and he's going to support me in every way he can."
10:09"...You've been showing all the musicians all those letters, and they were like, yeah,
10:16we call you Pen Affleck, and I was like, oh my God."
10:19A source told People that Affleck's wild mood swings also contributed to J.Lo's decision
10:24to file for divorce.
10:25The source said,
10:26"...They were trying to work through it, but when the mood swings and the big highs and
10:29big lows informed a toxicity that was pervasive, no one can help you.
10:33You have to help yourself."
10:34Here's hoping they both find what they're looking for.
10:39Here's hoping they both find what they're looking for.
10:40Here's hoping they both find what they're looking for.
10:41Here's hoping they both find what they're looking for.
10:42Here's hoping they both find what they're looking for.
10:43Here's hoping they both find what they're looking for.
10:44Here's hoping they both find what they're looking for.
10:45Here's hoping they both find what they're looking for.
10:46Here's hoping they both find what they're looking for.
10:47Here's hoping they both find what they're looking for.
10:48Here's hoping they both find what they're looking for.
10:49Here's hoping they both find what they're looking for.
10:50Here's hoping they both find what they're looking for.
10:51Here's hoping they both find what they're looking for.
10:52Here's hoping they both find what they're looking for.
10:53Here's hoping they both find what they're looking for.