Jennifer Garner does not love engaging with press about her ex-husband Ben Affleck, saying in a new interview with Stellar Magazine it doesn’t feel good to see how Affleck’s life is covered in the media. Or her own.
“I really work hard not to see either of us in the press,” she told the publication. “It doesn’t make me feel good, even if it’s something nice about one of us. I just try to forget that I’m out there in any way, and the same with anyone I love. I don’t need to see anyone in my family made into a meme.”
When she was asked if she’d seen any of the actual memes of Affleck that proliferate online, Garner replied that she hadn’t, but added, “Although I’m sure he’s quite meme-worthy, yes!”
Garner and Affleck were married between 2005 to 2018 and now co-parent their three children together, 17-year-old Violet, 14-year-old Seraphina, and 11-year-old Samuel. Garner is currently dating businessman John Miller, who she has been with since 2018. Affleck is married to Jennifer Lopez, who he also dated and was previously engaged to before his marriage to Garner.
In March, Affleck talked about his co-parenting relationship with Garner, with whom he remains close friends, while being interviewed by The Hollywood Reporter.
“One of the reasons I [decided to run my own company] was, I’m divorced,” he explained. “I share custody. I don’t want to go to Austin and New Orleans and Georgia anymore and not see my kids. It just doesn’t work. These years are too important. If I miss them, I’ll regret it for the rest of my life. And then I thought, ‘OK, well, if I’m in Los Angeles and I’m in an office and I’m doing this work, I can step out for the basketball game or the jazz performance.’ So I protect those things.”
Aimée Lutkin is the weekend editor at ELLE.com. Her writing has appeared in Jezebel, Glamour, Marie Claire and more. Her first book, The Lonely Hunter, will be released by Dial Press in February 2022.