Anyone who was around in the early 2000s remembers the phenomenon that was Bennifer — the moniker given to A-list couple Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck during their first whirlwind romance. However, the media scrutiny surrounding their relationship eventually led to its end and the couple called it quits. After rekindling their love in 2021 and finally tying the knot a year later, the couple still feel the effects of their first go-around, with Lopez recently revealing to Variety that they “both have PTSD” from the attention.
The now-married couple first began dating in 2002 and ended up getting engaged later that year, but they postponed their 2003 wedding “due to the excessive media attention” the nuptials had received, per Page Six. They eventually called off their relationship and moved on with other people. In 2021, however, their romance sparked again and they have been together ever since.
Despite the attention their first relationship received, Lopez has decided to be vulnerable once again with her “This Is Me… Now” album and companion film, which Affleck co-wrote and that shines a spotlight on her life with the Oscar winner, something that makes her a bit nervous, Page Six reports.
“As artists, we have to follow our heart, and this is me following my heart and doing something that maybe everybody didn’t think was the best idea, but I had to do it,” she said, adding that they are “older now” and wiser.” “We also know what’s important, what’s really important in life, and it’s not so much what other people think. It’s about being true to who you are.”
“This Is Me… Now” drops February 16 and is a follow-up to her 2002 album “This Is Me… Then.” Lopez describes the companion film as a “musical experience.”
“You have to see and you’ll have to experience it to understand it,” she said. “That’s why I call it a ‘musical experience.’ Because there’s music, you can see it, you can hear it, and then you’ll get to live it.”