Jennifer Lopez, the US actress and singer, has opened up about her divorce from Ben Affleck, her ex-husband.
The Hollywood stars tied the knot in July 2022. Lopez filed for divorce in August 2024 and revealed that they had been separated since April 26.
Speaking on the latest issue of Interview Magazine, Lopez said her divorce almost “took me out for good” but she did not regret her decision.
The actress said she is currently “not looking for anybody” but the initial feelings of the breakup left her feeling “lonely and desperate”.
The 55-year-old added that she does not have everything figured out but is “excited to be free and flying on my own”.
“It feels lonely, unfamiliar, scary. It feels sad. It feels desperate. But when you sit in those feelings and go, ‘These things are not going to kill me,’ it’s like, I am capable of joy and happiness all by myself,” she said.
“Being in a relationship doesn’t define me. I can’t be looking for happiness in other people. I have to have happiness within myself.
“I used to say I’m a happy person, but was still looking for something for somebody else to fill. I don’t regret it one second. That doesn’t mean it didn’t almost take me out for good. It almost did.
“But now, on the other side of it, I think to myself, “That is exactly what I needed. Thank you, God. I’m sorry it took me so long. I’m sorry that you had to do this to me so many times. I should have learned it two or three times ago.”
The pair first started dating in July 2002 and engaged in November. They were due to marry in September 2003 but postponed the wedding just days before the ceremony only to split in January 2004.
Lopez and Affleck, however, rekindled their romance shortly after the actress ended her two-year engagement with Alex Rodriguez in 2021.
The singer announced her engagement to the ‘Batman’ star in April 2022 — 18 years after they originally called off their wedding.
Lopez has now been married four times. Affleck, on the other hand, was previously married to the actress Jennifer Garner.
