Lopez and Affleck attempted to satirize the flood of attention in November 2002, when Lopez released the video for “ Jenny From the Block.” Co-starring a clean-shaven and prettied-up Affleck, the video sees the pair cuddling on a yacht. “At this rate, a pay-per-view wedding does not seem out of the question,” snarked the New York Times. The pair announced their engagement in an exclusive Primetime interview. Between August of 2002 and March 2004, the rising Us Weekly would devote 12 covers to the phenomenon of Bennifer. The new relationship was met with an immediate outpouring of public fascination.īeautiful, glamorous Jennifer Lopez and handsome, talented Ben Affleck were magazine draws on their own - but together, they had massive publicity appeal. The pair were first seen publicly canoodling in July 2002, shortly before Lopez filed for divorce from Judd. ( He would later say he did it to try to correct the public perception that Lopez was a diva who’s difficult to work with.) Foreshadowing the highly public nature of their relationship, his move was to take out a full-page ad in trade magazines about how great Lopez was. They have also strongly maintained that nothing actually happened between them while they were filming because Lopez was married to Cris Judd at the time.Īs Lopez’s marriage to Judd foundered, however, Affleck seems to have decided to shoot his shot. It was to become an infamous flop, but the pair didn’t know that then. Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck met in 2002, co-starring in the action comedy Gigli. “It’s not easy being overly wealthy superstars” Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck sign autographs at the premiere of Gigli in 2003. ( Quoth Lorde: “Don’t you think the early 2000s seem so far away?”) And the changes between the way we talked about Ben and Jen then and the way we talk about them now show us a lot about how the culture has shifted over the past 20 years. Bennifer 1.0 was very much a relationship of the early 2000s, the same era that is currently under much reexamination. Nonetheless, Bennifer 2.0 is a revisitation - and it is, in fact, showing us our asses a little bit. “But Bennifer Summer 2021? We’re not looking back on this moment in 10 years with regret.” She’s referring to the recent revelations that have made the celebrity gossip era of decades past feel even crueler and more tawdry with hindsight than it did at the time: what happened with Britney Spears, what happened with Dylan Farrow. “As we have learned over the years, a lot of the gossip that we used to participate in has been revisited, and history has shown us our asses,” Lui explains. It’s guilt-free gossip!” The lack of guilt that comes with glorying in the reunion of Bennifer is, as Lui notes, an unusual feature of celebrity voyeurism these days. “This story is GOOD FOR GOSSIP,” opined gossip columnist Elaine Lui at her blog Lainey Gossip in July. Now it’s discussed as the only good thing in the world. Then, the public treated the relationship as tacky, embarrassing, tarnishing both their images. Yet the rapturous reception to Bennifer 2.0 is a far cry from the world’s fascination with Bennifer 1.0. The reception has been one of overwhelming delight. Since Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez first reunited this spring after breaking off their engagement in 2004, they’ve been gracing the world with photos of their coupledom: glowy, aspirational “this is what Hollywood love looks like” iconography. If there is a shining bright spot in the world right now, it’s the reunion of Bennifer, the greatest celebrity gossip story the world has experienced in years.
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