Jennifer Lopez Tells Ben Affleck Engagement Story Amid Marriage Issues

Jennifer Lopez did not address questions about her marriage to Ben Affleck when she appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! — but she did mention her husband’s name.

Lopez, 54, was there Monday, May 20, to promote her new sci-fi film, Atlas, and neither she nor host Jimmy Kimmel addressed the marital speculation — the elephant in the room. She brought up Affleck, however, while telling a story about meeting Barbra Streisand earlier in her career. Streisand, she recalled, was “asking me to look at my engagement ring at the time — that Ben had given me — years ago.” The Hollywood legend had ogled that ring, saying, ‘So that’s a big diamond,’ to which Lopez replied, “Yes, it is!”

On Kimmel’s show, Lopez wore a simple silver band on her ring finger. She kept it on afterward as she walked the red carpet solo at Atlas’ Los Angeles premiere. It was her latest big event without Affleck, 51, in tow.

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The couple, lovingly dubbed Bennifer, raised eyebrows earlier this month after they had not been photographed together in recent weeks. Lopez attended the Met Gala solo while Affleck went to the live taping of Netflix’s roast of Tom Brady by himself.

Rumors began to swirl that Lopez and Affleck had split, but a source exclusively told Us Weekly that the twosome hit a rough patch in their relationship.

“Jen and Ben are having issues in their marriage,” the insider explained. “They started having issues a few months ago as Jen had started ramping up work commitments and prepping for her tour.”

The source shared that Lopez is “very focused on work” as she is getting ready to kick off her This Is Me … Live tour next month in Orlando.

“They are on two completely different pages most of the time,” the insider told Us.

A second source told Us that Lopez and Affleck don’t have plans to separate but noted the actor has been staying at a place in Los Angeles away from the couple’s usual home. An additional insider told Us Affleck moved out of his and Lopez’s house “several weeks ago.”

Since the split speculation began, Affleck and Lopez have been photographed together. On Friday, May 17, the pair were spotted at a school function for one of their kids. (Lopez shares twins Max and Emme, 16, with ex-husband Marc Anthony while Affleck is the father of Violet, 18, Seraphina, 15, and Samuel, 12, whom he shares with ex-wife Jennifer Garner.)

Both Affleck and Lopez wore their wedding rings. However, Affleck was photographed without his band earlier that day while out and about.

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Later that weekend, Lopez and Affleck were snapped driving in Brentwood, California, on Sunday, May 19. The duo were all smiles as Affleck drove while the singer sat in the passenger seat.

Lopez and Affleck’s relationship initially captured the hearts of fans in the early 2000s. They began dating after meeting on the set of their film Gigli. Their whirlwind Hollywood romance got serious when Affleck popped the question to Lopez in 2002. However, the twosome didn’t make it down the aisle. After postponing their planned September 2003 wedding, they called off their nuptials and officially split in 2004.

Nearly two decades later, Affleck and Lopez rekindled their romance in May 2021. In July 2022, they secretly tied the knot in Las Vegas. One month later, Lopez and Affleck held a bigger ceremony in Georgia for their friends and family.