Ben Affleck addresses Jennifer Garner’s divorce dish: ‘She’s allowed to talk about it’
This is a story about Ben Affleck talking about Jennifer Garner talking about their separation.
The Oscar winner isn’t sore about his ex airing some of their dirty laundry in her recent Vanity Fair profile. The “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” star appeared to believe it was cathartic for the actress to discuss their high-profile split in an effort to move on from the scandal — a word Garner said she had to explain to their three kids, Violet, 10; Seraphina, 7; and Sam, 4.
“She felt like she wanted to discuss it and get it out there and get it over with,” Affleck said in a recent New York Times interview, “so she could say, ‘Look, I already talked about it — I don’t want to do it again.’”
“It’s fine,” he continued. “She’s allowed to talk about it.”
And talk about it she did. Garner spilled the tea to the mag about the conclusion of their nearly 10-year marriage, dishing about Affleck’s treatment of her: “I always say, ‘When his sun shines on you, you feel it.’ But when the sun is shining elsewhere, it’s cold. He can cast quite a shadow.” She also dismissed talk of a nanny splitting them up. (Other tabloid stories alleged Affleck’s drinking, gambling and even a reunion of Bennifer 1.0 — that’d be him and Jennifer Lopez — as reasons for the breakup.)
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Garner’s interview hit during what Affleck described as “a particularly hard time” for him, while his every move was being scrutinized in the lead-up to his comic-book flick and while fallout from the breakup was still sought-after news. Her words were published the day before Affleck’s sit-down with the New York Times, which took place last month.
Initially, the 43-year-old “Gone Girl” star had no intention of discussing his family, for the sake of his three kids “because it ends up being in the record somewhere, in the great miasma of junk on the Internet.” However, he changed his mind mid-interview and said a few kind words about his ex, with whom he’s been civilly co-parenting since news of their split broke.
Though the two announced their intention to divorce last June, they have yet to file formal paperwork in court.
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“Jen’s great. She’s a great person,” Affleck said. “We’re on great terms. I just saw her this morning, so that’s the reality that I live in.”
Those great terms were manifest last week when paparazzi images of the former pair surfaced showing them sharing his sweater on a chilly Los Angeles day.
“Batman v Superman” is just at the beginning of its promotional parade, and Garner is in the middle of promoting her faith-based film “Miracles from Heaven,” so don’t be surprised if this isn’t the last we’ve heard from these two on the topic of their split.
Follow me on Twitter @NardineSaad.
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