When Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck broke up in 2004, they cited relentless media scrutiny as a significant factor in their breakup. Fast-forward to their reunion in 2021, and the couple once again found themselves under the public eye, and Affleck feels it wasn’t “fair” to ask JLo to be more discrete about their relationship.
The Batman actor always wanted to avoid the same level of intense scrutiny.
Affleck admitted that he initially preferred to keep their renewed romance off social media. “Getting back together, I said, ‘Listen, one of the things I don’t want is a relationship on social media,’” he told the Daily Mail.
While addressing their 2004 breakup, Affleck said, “When Jen and I broke up before,” it was because of the “massive amount of scrutiny around our private life.”
Affleck soon realized that this request was unfair to Lopez, who had built much of her career and public persona around being open with her fans.
“Then I sort of realized it’s not a fair thing to ask,” he told DM. “It’s sort of like, you’re gonna marry a boat captain and you go, ‘Well, I don’t like the water.’ We’re just two people with different kinds of approaches trying to learn to compromise.”
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Affleck reflected on how media scrutiny contributed to their breakup
The Argo star noted in Lopez’s documentary ‘The Greatest Love Story Never Told’: “I had a very firm sense of boundaries initially around the press while Jen I don’t think objected to it in the way I did,” and added, “I very much did object to it.”
“I would say [media attention] was about 50 percent [of what destroyed our relationship],” Afflect told The Independent.
“The idea that people hate you and they hate you together and that being together is poison and ugly and toxic and the thing none of us want to be part of. And ‘who the f*** would want to have them to dinner?’ And ‘what the f*** are they doing together?’”
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The couple’s decision to keep a low profile is understandable, given the role media attention played in their initial breakup, like what Prince Harry claimed over the years. In 2003, Lopez and Affleck called off their wedding and later announced their split.
“Due to the excessive media attention surrounding our wedding, we have decided to postpone the date,” they said in a joint statement.
