Ben Affleck Gushes About Jennifer Lopez’s Support: ‘She’s Looking Out For Me’

Ben Affleck is filled with appreciation for his wife, Jennifer Lopez. The actor sat down for an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, published on Thursday (March 16), and gushed about the guidance that the “Let’s Get Loud” singer has been able to provide him with after a few difficult years in the public eye.

When asked about his absence from social media — and why he chooses to stay offline — Affleck remarked, “My wife’s a genius at that. I don’t know if there’s anybody who understands Instagram better than her.”

The two-time Oscar winner added that Lopez came to a few conclusions regarding why he keeps his life out of the public eye. “She thinks that because of experiences that I’ve had, I’ve become very guarded. And she’s right. I view these things as landmines, where if you say one wrong thing, your career might be over,” Affleck mused. “I had a really painful experience where I did an interview where I was really vulnerable, and the entire pickup was something that was not only not right, it was actually the opposite of what I meant.”

The painful experience in question is regarding Affleck’s 2021 appearance on The Howard Stern Show, in which he linked his drinking to his ex-wife, Jennifer Garner. The actor clarified his comments later that year during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, stating that articles were spun around for “clickbait” and twisted his words into him blaming his wife for his drinking.

“To be clear, my behavior is my responsibility entirely. The point that I was trying to make was a sad one,” the 50-year-old said in the new Hollywood Reporter interview. “I was trying to say, ‘Hey, look, I was drinking too much, and the less happy you become, whether it’s your job, your marriage, it’s just that as your life becomes more difficult, if you’re doing things to fill a hole that aren’t healthy, you’re going to start doing more of those things.'”

Lopez, however, supports him despite the recent events. Affleck continued, “[She] tells me today, ‘Relax, be yourself. Have fun. You’re actually a fun guy who is real and genuine and you just seem so serious.’ Do I seem serious? But as in many things, she’s really right. And she loves me. She’s looking out for me. She’s trying to help me. So it’s like, maybe I ought to f–king listen to her.”

Up next for Affleck is the release of his new, self-directed drama, Air. The film — which follows sports executive Sonny Vaccaro and Nike in their attempts to pursue basketball rookie Michael Jordan for one of fashion’s most lucrative partnerships — is scheduled to premiere at SXSW on March 18, and hit theaters on April 5.