Jennifer Lopez’s divorce filing from Ben Affleck on wedding anniversary ‘speaks a ton’, says source
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Jennifer Lopez's chosen date on hitting the end button with her marriage to Ben Affleck is laden with significance, sources have claimed.
Lopez filed for divorce from Affleck on August 20, 2024—exactly two years since their Southern wedding, additionally citing their separation date as April 26, 2024.
Jennifer Lopez tried 'really hard' to make things work
A source close to Jennifer Lopez, 55, revealed, “She was done waiting and the date she did it speaks a ton."
“It gives her control of the process. It's good that she did," the source added, noting she filed for divorce without legal representation.
According to People, another insider confirms Lopez "tried really hard to make things work and is heartbroken". They also shared, “The kids are a top priority, as they always have been.”
Lopez, who shares 16-year-old twins Max and Emme with ex-husband Marc Anthony, and Affleck, father to Violet, 18, Seraphina, 15, and Samuel, 12, with ex-wife Jennifer Garner, are both reportedly focusing on their families as they navigate this new chapter.
“Everybody is ready to move on,” another insider said according to The Express Tribune.
Affleck and Lopez rekindled their romance in April 2021, nearly 17 years after their initial breakup in January 2004.
They legally married on July 16, 2022 at a surprise wedding at A Little White Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas, just a few months after their April 2022 engagement.
A month after the Vegas wedding, they had larger wedding ceremony in Georgia on the grounds of Affleck's 87-acre compound outside Savannah in August 2022. It was a star-studded affair with Matt Damon and Kevin Smith in attendance.
Back then, on the JLo newsletter, Lopez shared a detailed account of the day, describing her walk down the "aisle that would lead me toward the rest of my life" while wearing a stunning white Ralph Lauren gown with a flowing train and veil.
"When he saw me appear at the top of the stairs that moment it both made absolute sense while seeming still impossibly hard to believe, like the best dream, where all you want is never to awaken," she wrote.
"I would have had many of the same thoughts probably had I not been focusing so hard on not tripping over my dress, but when I got close enough to see his face, it made the same wonderful sense to me."
Lopez added, "Some old wounds were healed that day and the weight of the past finally lifted off our shoulders. Full-circle — and not at all the way we planned it. Better."
From 2002 to 2024, 'Bennifer' in a nutshell
Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez's relationship has been a captivating journey, weaving through decades of romance, breakups, and a dramatic reunion.
Their story began in 2002 on the set of 'Gigli,' where their connection blossomed despite Lopez still being married to Cris Judd.
Once her divorce was finalized in 2003, the couple’s relationship quickly captured the media’s attention, earning them the moniker "Bennifer".
Affleck proposed to Lopez with a pink diamond ring in November 2002, and they became engaged.
However, their wedding, scheduled for September 2003, was postponed amid intense media scrutiny, and the couple parted ways in January 2004 after nearly two years together.
In the years that followed, both moved on: Lopez married Marc Anthony and had twins, while Affleck wed Jennifer Garner. Despite their separate paths, they maintained a friendship.
Their story took a turn in April 2021 when they reunited after Lopez's split from Alex Rodriguez.
Their renewed romance was evident through public appearances and affectionate displays, leading to Affleck ring shopping in August 2021.
In a heartfelt message to fans on July 17, 2022, Lopez reflected on their journey: “We did it. Love is beautiful. Love is kind. And it turns out love is patient. Twenty years patient,” she wrote, referencing their first split in 2004.
However, the second chapter of their relationship came to an end on August 20, 2024, when the divorce papers were filed after just over two years of marriage.
