Bennifer 2.0 didn’t last: A look back at Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck’s 2nd chance at love
From a secret getaway to two weddings, revisit the highs and lows of J.Lo and Ben’s whirlwind reunion.
Bennifer 2.0 has officially taken its final bow.
After rekindling their early 2000s romance, Jennifer Lopez filed for divorce from Ben Affleck on Aug. 20 — the two-year anniversary of their Georgia wedding. Their whirlwind reunion, which began with a simple email in early 2021, led to everything from romantic getaways to a high-profile engagement and not one, but two, wedding ceremonies.
While it initially seemed like a fairytale comeback, sources previously told Yahoo Entertainment that the couple’s diverging career ambitions and growing concerns over privacy began to strain the relationship earlier this year, particularly as Lopez’s Affleck-inspired projects allegedly made him uncomfortable.
As short-lived as it was, their whirlwind love story captivated the public and reminded everyone that even the most glamorous couples face real-life challenges.
“It's sad, but it's for the best,” one source who knows both Affleck and Lopez recently told Yahoo. “They are just different people when it comes down to it, but there's been a lot of love there over the years.”
Here’s a rewind of Bennifer 2.0 — from reuniting via email to officially filing for divorce.
April 2021: Affleck sends Lopez an email
The couple reconnected when Affleck sent Lopez an email shortly after she called off her engagement to Alex Rodriguez in April 2021. He reportedly told her that he had given a glowing review for a magazine that had asked him to comment about her for a profile.
Affleck had recently split from Ana de Armas at the time, and soon, Lopez and Affleck were seen traveling together to one another’s homes.
May 2021: A secret trip to Montana
The couple were spotted spending several days together during a private trip to Montana. It became clear that a new romance was blossoming.
“Obviously we weren't trying to go out in public,” Lopez told Vogue about that time in a December 2022 cover story. “But I never shied away from the fact that for me, I always felt like there was a real love there, a true love there.”
It was later reported that they were officially back together and that Lopez was “very excited about how things are going with Ben.”
June 2021: Lopez moves from Miami to Los Angeles
Lopez moved from Miami to Los Angeles in hopes of having a “fresh start” with Affleck. At the time, a source told E! that Lopez planned on going between L.A. and the Hamptons in New York that summer, and that L.A. would “be her base” as she began looking at schools for her kids to attend that fall.
July 2021: Instagram official
The couple became Instagram official after Lopez’s friend Leah Remini posted a clip Including a photo of them from her birthday party, which had taken place in June.
“They are head over heels for each other again,” an insider told Yahoo Entertainment at the time. “They wouldn't be spending time like this with the kids if it was just a fling.”
September 2021: Red carpet debut
The couple made their red carpet debut at the Venice Film Festival for the premiere of The Last Duel, which Affleck co-wrote with Matt Damon. It had been nearly two decades since Affleck and Lopez walked a red carpet together — in 2003 for their film, Gigli.
Weeks later, Affleck and Lopez walked the Met Gala carpet together. A source later told Us Weekly that “going red carpet official was a wonderful experience” for them both.
February 2022: Lopez feels secure
In an interview with Rolling Stone, Lopez acknowledged that they weren’t planning on breaking up anytime soon.
“I don’t think we would have got back together if we thought that was where it was headed,” she said. “We feel like what we found again is so much more important, and how we protect that and how we live our lives — what to share, what not to share — is the balance that we have now, the benefit of experience and the wisdom that we gained over the years.”
April 2022: They’re engaged — again
The singer teased on social media that she had a “major announcement” planned for her upcoming newsletter, On the JLo. It was there that she revealed a giant engagement ring.
She later revealed that Affleck had proposed while she was in the bath. “It was nothing fancy at all, but it was the most romantic thing I could've ever imagined,” she wrote in the newsletter.
Major announcement!!!! https://t.co/G5oGxtX0z5 pic.twitter.com/HTIqbHMJ2M
— jlo (@JLo) April 9, 2022
July 2022: They elope in Las Vegas
The couple surprised fans with an impromptu Las Vegas wedding. She later revealed that “PTSD” from their failed 2003 wedding inspired them to elope.
August 2022: They married — again — in Georgia
After legally getting married in Vegas, the couple threw a bigger celebration at Affleck’s Georgia estate, where they had reportedly planned to get married over 20 years ago, before splitting up the first time. Lopez decided to take Affleck’s last name.
January 2023: The families move in together
During an appearance on Today, Lopez opened up about moving the kids in together at the couple’s new home in L.A., describing the experience as an “emotional transition.”
“It’s just been a phenomenal year, like [the] best year, I think, since my kids were born,” she said at the time.
February 2023: Matching tattoos
Soon after Affleck went viral at the Grammy Awards for seemingly appearing “miserable,” the couple debuted matching tattoos on their first Valentine’s Day as a married couple: two cupid arrows displaying the first letters of their names: “J” and “B.”
February 2024: 3 new projects
On Feb. 16, Lopez released her new album, This Is Me... Now, which she said was inspired by her new romance with Affleck. She also released a musical film version, This Is Me... Now: A Love Story, and a documentary, The Greatest Love Story Never Told, which chronicled her new romance with Affleck.
"People know the story of me and Ben, that's not the story I want to tell," she told Yahoo Entertainment ahead of the album’s release. “The thing I love more about who I am today as opposed to maybe 20 years ago is I can really continue evolving, and growing, and knowing that I'm not where I'm gonna be in two years, or five years or 10 years. It's going to be even better. It's really the exciting part.”
April 2024: They privately separate
The couple privately separated, according to Lopez’s divorce filing that lists April 26 as the official date of their separation, Variety confirmed.
May 2024: Solo appearances and tour cancellation
Following a string of high-profile solo appearances, the media began speculating that the couple was on the rocks. Affleck was noticeably absent on the red carpet at the May 20 premiere of Lopez’s new film Atlas, where she reportedly shut down questions about the split rumors.
Later that month, Lopez announced that she was canceling her This Is Me... Live tour, writing in her newsletter that she was "completely heartsick and devastated" over the decision, but called it "absolutely necessary."
June 2024: They move out of their house
It was reported that Affleck quietly moved his stuff out of their shared home while Lopez was vacationing in Italy with friends without him.
July 2024: A new place — without each other
According to People, Affleck moved out of the couple’s house and closed escrow on a new $20.5 million L.A. home on the same day Lopez finalized the sale of her New York City condo, which had reportedly been on the market for seven years.
Meanwhile, the couple publicly ignored important milestones on opposite coasts — including the singer’s Bridgerton-themed birthday, which took place in the Hamptons while Affleck was in L.A. In a video, Lopez sang, “Happy Days Are Here Again.”
August 2024: Lopez files for divorce
Soon after Affleck hosted a “small” get-together for his 52nd birthday on Aug. 15, news broke on Aug. 20 that Lopez had filed for divorce from Affleck, exactly two years after their Georgia wedding ceremony.
