Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner have officially filed for divorce, almost two years after initially announcing their separation, in June 2015. The Hollywood ex-power couple asked for a joint custody of their three children, though no further details are known at the moment. Since they first announced that they were separating, they have tried to maintain a most cordial and civilized relationship possible, for the sake of their children, Violet (11), Seraphina (8) and Samuel (5). Before officially announcing their divorce today, they were still living together in Brentwood, not in the same house that they shared as a happily married couple, but on the same property, that also has a guest house in which Affleck lived, although, with the current official situation, the living arrangement will most probably change.
The first separation announcement
They stunned the entertainment world in 2015 when they announced that they mutually agreed to separate, stating that “after much thought and careful consideration, we have made the difficult decision to divorce but we go forward with love and friendship for one another and a commitment to co-parenting our children, whose privacy we ask to be respected during this difficult time”. Indeed, with love and friendship, they proceeded and their commitment to their children was always obvious, with them being photographed together on several occasions, whether they went to church, to school or even on vacation together. They even sparked rumors of reconciliation in the last couple of months, with sources saying that they called off the divorce and that things were great again between them.
Obviously, that was not the case and, this time, unlike in 2015, things are pretty much set in stone, with no turning back.
Divorce by the book?
The two of them are one of the most amicable ex-couples in Hollywood, two adults that know what is in the best interest of their children. As such, they handled the whole situation with grace and dignity, but, most important, without scandal, unlike most Hollywood couples going through separation and the now pending divorce will unlikely change the situation for the worst.
Ben called Jennifer last December “world’s greatest mom” and that he’s very lucky to co-parent with such an incredible woman while Jen described her family as a “modern family”.
Still, some problems were obviously present between them, mainly coming from Ben’s part. First, immediately after the separation announcement in 2015, there were very persistent rumors that he had an affair with their nanny, which were neither confirmed nor denied, though the press made them seem like more of a reality than something fabricated.
Nonetheless, the timing of their divorce with the supposed discovery of the affair was curious, to say the least, but nothing more was written on the subject since. Second, his love for gambling was a well-known fact in Hollywood, but it was later revealed that it was more of an addiction and that was not his only addiction. In March, Ben posted on his Facebook that he completed a stint in rehab to treat his alcohol addiction, a stint he said was successful.
What’s next?
Both actors will be busy in the next period, either filming new movies or promoting upcoming ones. Jennifer's next projects are a TV series called "Llama Llama" and movies "Amusement Park" and "Simon vs. the Homosapiens Agenda." Ben will soon start promoting the "Justice League" movie, in which he plays the Batman, his second stint as the caped crusader after the ill-received "Batman vs.
Superman" last year and will soon start filming the standalone "The Batman" and directing the movie "Witness for the Prosecution." We wish them good luck in both their personal and professional lives and may this divorce be as amicable as possible, as was their relationship until now.
