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00:00Tonight, it's over.
00:13The couple that once frolicked in her Jenny from the Block video, and on many a red carpet,
00:18Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck calling it quits for the second time and heading for
00:22divorce court.
00:23I think this is probably the end of Bennifer.
00:26I don't know if we're going to see a Bennifer 3.0.
00:28JLo making it official, filing in person of the couple's wedding anniversary after
00:34months of speculation.
00:35Why they might want to settle the split fact, plus.
00:49Good evening.
00:50Thank you for joining us.
00:51Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck confirming months of speculation that two year marriage
00:56is over.
00:57It's their second time around, and Bennifer seemed ready for the long haul.
01:01But for months, fans seemed to be seeing cracks in their foundation.
01:05Here's my Nightline co-anchor, Juju Chang.
01:08Well, it's over.
01:12I think this is probably the end of Bennifer.
01:14I don't know if we're going to see a Bennifer 3.0.
01:17Bennifer 2.0, the couple everyone loved, or loved to hate, is calling it quits again.
01:24I think when the news dropped that Jennifer filed for divorce, no one was shocked to hear
01:30that.
01:31Exactly two years to the day since the A-listers held that big wedding ceremony in Georgia.
01:36Jennifer Lopez filed for divorce from Ben Affleck under her legal name, Jennifer Affleck,
01:41and reportedly there's no prenup.
01:43The divorce case is unwanted attention for a celebrity.
01:46They're not in control of this, and it's generally a negative thing for them to go through.
01:52So I imagine they want to get this done as quickly as possible.
01:56Christopher Melcher is a Los Angeles-based divorce attorney.
01:59He repped Kanye West against Kim Kardashian and Katie Holmes against Tom Cruise.
02:04So in California, all the divorce records and proceedings are open to the public.
02:09So with a high-profile couple, this creates a risk to their brand.
02:12I think people care about celebrity breakups because these people are on our magazine covers,
02:20they're on our TVs.
02:21So it feels like we are signing up to be a part of a relationship from a distance.
02:29And so when it goes awry, you know, people want to know all the details.
02:35Both stars have had high-profile romances and heartbreaks.
02:39JLo has been married four times, her longest relationship with Marc Anthony, the father
02:44of her twins, Max and Emmy.
02:46She also dated Sean Diddy Combs and Yankee star Alex Rodriguez.
02:50Affleck most notably dated Gwyneth Paltrow, who he met on Shakespeare in Love...
02:54What is the play and what is my part?
02:57...before meeting JLo.
02:58In 2001, Affleck and Lopez first worked together filming the movie Gigli.
03:03Hello.
03:04I'm sorry.
03:04Do we know each other?
03:06Not yet.
03:06Jennifer!
03:07By 2002, their romance became a tabloid obsession.
03:11He even had a part in her video, Jenny from the Block.
03:14No matter where I go, I know where I came from.
03:17When Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck first got together, they were a paparazzi photographer's
03:23dream because they knew that flick was going to get them big bucks.
03:26Months later, they were engaged, Ben popping the question with a massive six-carat pink
03:31diamond.
03:32But Gigli bombed at the box office, making only $7 million on a $75 million budget.
03:39And sadly, so did their relationship.
03:41In September 2003, the couple postponed their wedding, citing excessive media attention.
03:46And in January of 2004, they split.
03:49Looking back on it 10 years later, JLo talked about the breakup on the Today show.
03:53It was my first big heartbreak.
03:55In 2004, Affleck embarked on his longest relationship to date with his former Daredevil co-star,
04:01Jennifer Gardner.
04:02Does every guy have to go through all this to find out your name?
04:05You should try asking for my number.
04:06They married in 2005 and had three children.
04:10Technically, Bennifer 2.0 was actually Jennifer Gardner and Ben Affleck.
04:15They kind of became this America's sweetheart golden couple.
04:19And I think people thought that she was very good and grounding for Ben Affleck.
04:24But in 2015, they shocked the world when they announced their divorce.
04:29That's also when it became clear Affleck was struggling with addiction.
04:33She helped him into treatment in both 2017 and 19.
04:37I talked with him about his struggle with sobriety back in 2021.
04:40I don't think there's anything all that special or particularly interesting about being a
04:45recovering alcoholic.
04:46Obviously, because it engenders like behavior that we really feel ashamed of when we're
04:52in that state.
04:53There's also a very rewarding, enriching process of overcoming that.
04:57But it's also like, that's part of my life.
05:00It's not the most interesting thing.
05:02The tabloids were interested in all of it, especially when photos surfaced of him and
05:06J-Lo.
05:07They went Instagram official on her 52nd birthday.
05:10And yet, Affleck didn't seem too keen to talk about the relationship publicly.
05:14So I have to ask the question, Ben, you and Jennifer walk the red carpet.
05:19Is dealing with paparazzi different this time around?
05:23I'm not sure why you feel compelled to ask that question.
05:26I feel no compulsion to answer it.
05:28I feel compelled.
05:29I actually do understand why.
05:31It's part of the experience of my life, and since I've been an actor of tabloid attention
05:39and paparazzi and stuff, I'm not sure what it is that I don't find my life merits that
05:46kind of interest.
05:47By April of 2022, the pair was engaged for a second time.
05:51J-Lo talking about their reunion with my colleague, John Quinones.
05:54I got to ask about Ben.
05:55Yeah, okay.
05:56How's it going?
05:57I mean, this is the best time of my life.
06:00I love my career, but nothing is more fulfilling to me than being able to build a family.
06:05To keep with the theme of twos, the pair married twice, first in Vegas in July of 2022, documented
06:11on her website.
06:12Then, a month later, they did it all again, but bigger, on Affleck's Georgia estate, with
06:17famous friends like Matt Damon in attendance.
06:20By 2023, they were regular red carpet targets, cameras capturing some unusual moments, a
06:26tense talk at the Grammys, an awkward exchange at a premiere.
06:30This year, J-Lo released her self-financed project, This Is Me Now, a new music album,
06:37and a complimentary film on Amazon.
06:39There was also a documentary where Affleck talked about their clash in styles.
06:43Getting back together, I said, listen, one of the things I don't want is a relationship
06:47on social media.
06:48Then I sort of realized it's not a fair thing to ask.
06:53It's sort of like, you know, you're going to marry a boat captain, and you want to like
06:58the captain, and you want to like the water, you know?
07:02J-Lo acknowledged that opening up was a big compromise for her husband.
07:06I don't think he's very comfortable with me doing all of this, but he loves me.
07:10He knows I'm an artist, and he's going to support me in every way he can.
07:14By the spring, rumors started making headlines that the marriage was in trouble.
07:19J-Lo was chair at this year's Met Gala, which she attended alone.
07:23She also did the majority of her press events solo.
07:25We just didn't see them together.
07:27It wasn't a thing anymore.
07:29By the time we got to a divorce filing, it didn't seem like it was that far-fetched that
07:35was going to happen.
07:36The divorce filing may not have been a surprise, but it does leave clues to the breakup.
07:40Lopez reportedly listing their separation date as April 26th.
07:44I imagine they want to get this done as quickly as possible.
07:48I would also expect there's going to be a non-disclosure or non-disparagement agreement
07:53between the two of them, so that they're not going to be able to talk about intimate details
07:58of their relationship.
07:59For now, fans will have to deal with their disappointment, some hoping the couple will
08:04give it a third try, while others hope this breakup sticks.