Jami Ganz | New York Daily News
Friends of Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez don’t know that the couple’s marriage can be salvaged, amid ongoing tensions that have them living separately, just ahead of what would be their two-year anniversary.
While some pals of the Affleck, 51, and Lopez, 54, “believe they can work it out with time and effort, pointing to their deep bond,” a source told Us Weekly that “others think the relationship has run its course.”
The couple, who wed in summer 2022, has been at odds for months and mutually decided it was necessary to take “some space to work out whether or not the relationship is right for both of them,” according to an insider.
Affleck has “been checked out” of and “worn down” by the marriage, said the source. That could have something to do with the fact that the Oscar winner, per the source, “doesn’t agree with Jennifer’s lifestyle.”
Another source noted that work commitments — including respective filming schedules and Lopez’s prep for her tour, which kicks off next month — “highlighted the emotional and physical distance between them.” As a result, they’ve “found it increasingly difficult to communicate effectively” and “small misunderstandings” boiled over.
The “Gone Girl” star prefers to keep his life close to the vest while Lopez details many of her personal experiences, as heard in this year’s album “This Is Me…Now,” and seen in the accompanying musical, “This Is Me…Now: A Love Story,” as well as the documentary, “The Greatest Love Story Never Told.”
The tensions have only been “exacerbated” by their differing approaches to finances and parenting.
Since decamping from their $60 million Beverly Hills mansion to a home in nearby Brentwood, Affleck is said to have “realized how much he misses Jen” and become more invested in salvaging the relationship, said one of the sources.
That insider noted that, previously, Lopez was the one “committed” to saving the union.
While promoting her new Netflix film “Atlas” last week, Lopez was asked if the rumors about her marriage are true, which led her to chide the inquiring reporter. Sources told TMZ journalists were previously told to avoid personal questions about her relationship.
Earlier this month, sources told Us Weekly that while the couple is “having issues,” they have zero intention of splitting.
Affleck and Lopez were engaged in the early 2000s before calling off their would-be nuptials. He married and had three children with Jennifer Garner while Lopez married and had twins with Marc Anthony. Affleck and Lopez ultimately reconciled during the pandemic in 2021.