Formerly engaged couple Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez have been spotted hanging out quite a few times since Lopez's recent breakup with Alex Rodriguez. The supposed rekindled romance has been to the delight of the world that fondly remembers “Bennifer” in the early 2000s. The two have been relatively hush on the matter, but now it seems Affleck’s dad is opening up about the hoopla.
The Sun caught up with Ben Affleck’s dad, Timothy Affleck, and specifically asked about the rumors that his son had been holding a torch for Jennifer Lopez ever since the end of Bennifer back in 2004. The 77-year-old said:
I’ve never heard of all that nonsense…Of course I’ve heard of her. But I’d no idea about any of this.
Ben Affleck’s dad would go on to explain that his kids “share with me what they want to share.” However, Timothy Affleck stated that due to “their work and COVID,” he hasn’t seen his kids in a while. Ben Affleck has, indeed, been busy of late. He is currently filming for his supporting role as Batman in DC’s The Flash, and his prior work in Ridley Scott’s The Last Duel and Deep Water, the latter with ex Ana de Armas, have seen delays in releases due to COVID-19.
But likely, Ben Affleck’s dad knows more than he’s letting on concerning Jennifer Lopez. There’s still a thing called phones during the pandemic. Still, it’s valiant that his dad is trying to protect him from the raging rumors circulating about his love life. He stated that he wishes the world would prioritize more important matters over the nostalgia for Bennifer 2.0. He reflected:
A huge corporate enterprise – which Hollywood is – by its nature is a tough place to make your way and for a global star, which Ben was, it’s even harder. I just wish people would focus on the good work my son does in Congo – the women he helps there…There are important stories the media should be reporting like that, not this nonsense [about Jennifer].
We can’t agree more that Ben Affleck’s charity, Eastern Congo Initiative, which provides grants for the nation's community organizations, is more important. Still, the re-emergence of Bennifer has grabbed not only the public’s support, but those close to Ben and Jen. Affleck’s former Jersey Girls director Kevin Smith and his best friend Matt Damon are enthused by the prospect of their reunion. Even the Boston Red Sox joined in on the merriment.
The undiluted joy over Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez’s relationship is a reflection of the fact that they defined that early-2000s era, as well as her and P. Diddy’s relationship prior to. She spoke at length about these culture-defining relationships in 2019 to CBS Sunday Morning, saying at the time:
The Bennifer [era]…I don’t look at them as eras in that way. I look at them as these were people in my life who I really cared about and fell in love with. We had special, very unique relationships, with both those people and I think that’s what captured the public’s attention in a sense because there was realness to them. There was an authenticity to them, to those relationships. People felt it.
And people are feeling it again. Only this time, it's nostalgia as we think of Bennifer, that iconic "Jenny from the Block" music video and how times can manage to change and stay the same.
