USA "Bennifer" out: Jennifer Lopez files for divorce
The "Bennifer" love story is dogged by bad luck. Even at the second attempt, US singer Jennifer Lopez and US actor Ben Affleck are not happy in love for long. Lopez (55) is divorcing Affleck (52) after two years of marriage. According to media reports, she filed for divorce at the court in Los Angeles on Tuesday (local time). Lopez gave April 26 as the date for the separation, as "Variety" and "TMZ.com" reported, citing the documents.
Lopez is drawing the line on a day that has a very special meaning for the couple. Exactly two years ago, on August 20, 2022, they held a big wedding celebration at Affleck's estate in the US state of Georgia. Lopez posted photos of their "big day", a dream wedding with a white veil, designer wedding dresses and fireworks.
In July, they had already made it official in the casino city of Las Vegas in the US state of Nevada. There they officially tied the knot in a small wedding chapel. They had just made it to the Little White Wedding Chapel at midnight, Lopez posted on her social media with photos, videos and a detailed description of their "best wedding ever" - signed with the name Jennifer Lynn Affleck.
They were already a couple over 20 years ago, but it didn't last long. The "Bennifer" romance lasted 18 months until they broke off their first engagement in January 2004. They made two films together at the time - "Love with Risk - Gigli" and "Jersey Girl" - but both flopped at the box office. They were constantly in the spotlight and were hounded by the tabloid media.
Lopez had already been married twice before her first relationship with Affleck - from 1997 to 1998 to waiter Ojani Noa and from 2001 to 2003 to dancer Cris Judd. Shortly after the end of "Bennifer", she married singer Marc Anthony in 2004, which lasted ten years. They are parents to twins Emme and Max. Affleck was married to actress Jennifer Garner from 2005 to 2018 and they have three children.
Lopez proudly shared her second engagement to Affleck in April 2022 with her fans. His proposal was "not fancy at all", "but the most romantic thing I could have ever imagined", Lopez wrote in her newsletter "On the JLo" at the time. "Saturday night, while I was in my favorite place in the world (the bubble bath), my beloved got down on one knee and proposed. I was completely caught off guard, looking into his eyes smiling and crying at the same time, trying to comprehend the fact that this was happening again after 20 years." Of course she said yes.
After their flash wedding in Las Vegas, things looked good for a long time, at least on the outside. Last February, the Latina singer released her ninth studio album "This Is Me... Now" ("This Is Me... Now") with 13 songs that are almost exclusively about her love for Affleck. She also released the movie "This Is Me... Now: A Love Story", a portrait of her life and career.
However, the negative headlines have been piling up in recent months. At the end of May, Lopez canceled her US tour planned for the summer - on the grounds that she needed "time off to be with her children, family and close friends", according to a newsletter from the musician.
Lopez went on a solo promotional tour for her new film "Atlas" and celebrated her 55th birthday in July - without Affleck - in the Hamptons near New York, according to US media reports. Meanwhile, the actor and director was filming in California. The luxury villa they shared in Beverly Hills was for sale and Affleck had bought his own house, People magazine reported in July.
The separation now raises further questions. Have the couple signed a prenuptial agreement? How will they divide their million-dollar fortune? At least there won't be a custody battle. The "Bennifer" love story has not produced any children together.
SDA
