There’s a growing narrative about the incipient Bennifer divorce. The narrative: Ben Affleck was the one who wanted out and he’s been done with his marriage for months, all while Jennifer Lopez hoped for reconciliation and wanted to work things out. Not only that, but Jennifer only realized it was truly over when Ben purchased his new place and he closed escrow on her birthday. Now she’s quickly coming to the program and spreading the news that she’s fine and she’s making her peace with his decision. Speaking of, Us Weekly’s cover story is basically all about how Ben was completely over it.
A fresh start: Sources exclusively share in the latest Us Weekly cover story that Affleck, 51 — who’s been busy working on The Accountant 2 and a new Netflix thriller with pal Matt Damon — is ready for a fresh start. One in which he hopes to remain a bit more under the radar. “Ben needed new energy in his life,” says a source, noting that the star’s new home is what he was initially looking for before he and Lopez purchased their estate. “This one is more his speed,” adds the source. “He’s in a better mindset and is pushing forward.”
Jennifer was caught off-guard when Ben bought a new home: A Lopez source confirms that Affleck’s actions caught the singer off guard but says she had her suspicions “[because] he had been living in a rental.” Adds an Affleck source: “Ben moving into a new home was the closure of the relationship.”
Jennifer hoped they could work through it: Lopez was hoping they could make things work despite their issues. As Us previously reported, their hectic work schedules took a toll on the marriage. “Both have demanding careers that often require them to be in different cities,” a Lopez insider said. A second insider told Us that Lopez and Affleck were on “different pages” in life, noting that the twosome“don’t have a lot of common ground, and the honeymoon phase has worn off. In a perfect world, Jen would like to make it work with Ben. It’s heartbreaking to her and she tried very hard to make it work.”
They don’t want to drag this out? “Neither of them want this to be dragged out and contentious,” says a fourth source, noting that the stars have a prenup in place. [Their film, Unstoppable, is set to premiere in September] “Ben and Jen are in agreement that they want it to be seamless.” A fifth source confirms they have a prenup with certain conditions, so if they move forward, it won’t be long and drawn out. “Behind the scenes they have been finalizing what that will look like if they pull the trigger,” explains the fifth source. “Their main goal is to remain amicable.” The Affleck source adds they are in communication.
Ben wants to focus on himself: Affleck’s been focusing on his well-being. (The actor has been open about his past struggles with drug and alcohol addiction.) “Ben feels like he’s been weighed down this year,” says the first source. “He will always care for Jen, but he knows the marriage is done, and he wants to focus on himself right now.”
Matty D & not caring about the attention: “Matt has been so supportive throughout this ordeal,” says a fifth source. Their company, Artists Equity, is producing their upcoming film RIP. “Matt’s a great distraction, and he makes Ben laugh.” A sixth source says the Argo director isn’t overly concerned with the optics of the high-profile split: “Ben doesn’t care about the negative attention.”
I’m going back and forth on this. Ben’s an a–hole for the way he handled this, but also… I sort of understand why he feels the need to just cut things off rather abruptly and decide that he’s over this marriage. What’s wild is that he was over it back in February, during the premiere of This Is Me… Now, which was about how much she loves him and how she had been waiting for years to get back with him. He’s in the documentary too and they were actually really sweet together. But somewhere in between filming that (last year) and the premiere in February, it’s like Ben completely snapped out of it. Jane Fonda told her dumb ass that this would happen too. A lot of people told J.Lo. She didn’t listen.
Photos courtesy of Backgrid, cover courtesy of Us Weekly.