Ben Affleck knows that his level of fame doesn’t compare to his wife, Jennifer Lopez.
“People love her, and she really represents something important to people,” Affleck, 51, told Kevin Hart during the season 4 premiere of his Peacock talk show, Hart to Heart, on Thursday, June 20. “[To me,] people are like, ‘Hey, I like your movie,’ and then they’re like ‘AAAHHHH! J-LO!,’ It’s amazing, you know what I mean?”
Affleck shared that since Lopez, 54, is “so famous” her presence brings out the energy of diehard fans wherever she goes. That includes moments when the pair are out with their family. While speaking to Hart, Affleck recalled one encounter he and Lopez had when they took their blended brood to see a play in New York City. (Affleck is the father of three kids: Violet, 18, Seraphina, 15, and Samuel, 12, whom he welcomed with ex-wife Jennifer Garner. Lopez, for her part, shares twins Max and Emme, both 16, with ex-husband Marc Anthony.)
“We get out of the car, we were going to a play, and I was like, ‘F–k it, baby, we’re going to be late, we gotta walk a block and a half.’ She was like, ‘Alright,’ she didn’t say s–t,” he recalled. “Get out with her, all the kids, through Times Square, and the s–t was, like, f–king bananas.”
Affleck shared that during their walk to the venue they were met by countless fans who were excited to see Lopez in person, which appeared to overwhelm Affleck.
“I was like, ‘Oh my God.’ There was a lady, she was smoking weed, in a full purple skin-tight suit — she’s a big, heavy lady — and she starts running backward filming, going ‘J-LO!!’ Like a herald, that then gets everyone else, and then all the tourists [come in.]”
The actor explained that once Lopez was recognized, it felt like they were surrounded by “hundreds of people” who were “screaming” for him, Lopez and their five kids.
Earlier in his chat with Hart, Affleck explained that while he doesn’t like being photographed on his own or while he’s spending time with his children. However, he confessed he’s less bothered when he’s with Lopez for many of her events.
“I don’t mind, you can take my picture at a club or a premiere, with my wife, I don’t give a f–k. Knock yourself out. I don’t notice you,” Affleck said. “But with my children, that’s a different thing.”
During his sit down, Affleck put on a united front with Lopez amid their ongoing marital woes. A source exclusively told Us Weekly in May that the couple had been “having issues” in their relationship while Lopez was gearing up to hit the road on her This Is Me … Now Tour — which she ended up canceling in June.
“They started having issues a few months ago as Jen had started ramping up work commitments and prepping for her tour,” the insider shared, adding that Lopez’s jam-packed work schedule had the pair “on two completely different pages most of the time.”
As Lopez and Affleck continue to navigate the next steps of their relationship, the pair are selling their shared Los Angeles home. Us confirmed last month that Affleck moved out of the abode while they work on things.
“It has been really hard for her and she is trying to figure out her next act,” a second insider told Us this month, noting that attempting to keep up with “being J.Lo” has taken a toll on the singer and her loved ones, including Affleck.
