Ben Affleck was spotted taking a drive in Beverly Hills on Tuesday, four days after his ex-wife Jennifer Lopez was seen holding hands with his friend Matt Damon.
The 52-year-old Batman star wore black aviator sunglasses and sported a bit of facial hair during the ride.
Affleck, who is reportedly “humiliated” by his split from Lopez, 55, wore a gray jacket and lilac shirt underneath and appeared to be in good spirits behind the wheel.
This comes after an uproar erupted when Lopez and Damon, 53, were spotted holding hands during a private moment at the afterparty for the premiere of Unstoppable, which was held Friday night at the Toronto International Film Festival.
The Jenny From the Block singer and the Bourne Identity star kept their heads close together and looked serious as they reportedly spoke for 20 minutes.
Ben Affleck, 52, was spotted taking a drive in Beverly Hills on Tuesday, four days after his estranged wife Jennifer Lopez was seen holding hands with his pal Matt Damon
Eyebrows were raised when Lopez, 55, and Damon, 53, were spotted holding hands during a private moment at the afterparty for the premiere of Unstoppable on Friday
It was later reported that Matt refused to talk to Jennifer about Ben at the party. Sources claim that the actor made it clear that he “will always support Ben.”
Lopez would like to talk to Damon about her estranged husband after their divorce, but Damon is reportedly “not interested in it at all.”
“Matt stonewalled every attempt JLo made to talk about Ben at the premiere,” an insider exclusively told DailyMail.com.
“Her timing was so awkward because she expected it to be picked up and go viral if she took Matt aside for an intimate conversation.”
The source continued: “Her whole hand on his hand was a nice touch, but he wanted none of it.”
“He told her he was glad she was okay and grateful for her participation in the film. But he also made it clear that he wasn’t there to talk about Ben at all.”
At one point, the two were sitting together on the corner of the party and Lopez placed her hand on Damon’s as he bowed his head as if in prayer.
Despite how fans may have interpreted the footage, the insider insisted that Damon “wasn’t ‘praying’ with her” and stressed that he would “always have Ben’s back no matter what.”
The Batman star wore black aviator sunglasses and sported a bit of facial hair during the ride
It was reported that Matt refused to talk to Jennifer about Ben at the party, with sources claiming that the actor made it clear that he ‘will always support Ben’; the two were seen together with Don Cheadle at the premiere
“Matt blocked every attempt JLo made to talk about Ben at the premiere,” an insider exclusively told DailyMail.com
Lopez turned heads in a disco ball-inspired revenge dress for the event, her first red carpet appearance since filing for divorce from Affleck on August 20. The date marked exactly two years since they tied the knot at his Georgia mansion.
Damon and Affleck are executive producers on Unstoppable, a sports drama about Anthony Robles, who was born with one leg and became a champion wrestler in college. However, Affleck chose to stay home rather than risk a public encounter with his ex on the red carpet.
Earlier on Tuesday, insiders claimed that Affleck felt “humiliated” when his short-lived marriage to Lopez ended, but that he was supported by Matt when he suffered an emotional breakdown.
Affleck reportedly burst into tears as he told Damon he was “jealous” of his lifestyle – he had successfully quit smoking – and his stable marriage to Luciana Barroso, with whom he has three daughters.
“Ben is extremely vulnerable and humiliated after his failed marriage to JLo,” an insider exclusively told DailyMail.com. “He burst into tears and told Matt he was jealous of him and his lifestyle.”
“He told Matt that he has everything he wants – a nearly 20-year happy marriage and children living with him. He admitted that he has taken the wrong path in life so many times, while he has seen Matt take the right path time and time again.”
The source added: ‘He told Matt that if he had the chance now he would hibernate.’
Earlier this year, rumors of trouble in Affleck’s marriage surfaced when he wasn’t photographed with Lopez for 47 days.
Affleck also received support from Matt when he had an emotional breakdown following his split from the Hustlers star, insiders told DailyMail.com on Tuesday
The actor reportedly broke down with Damon, telling his friend he was “jealous” of his lifestyle and his stable marriage to Luciana Barroso (the two couples pictured in January 2024)
Lopez filed for divorce last month, exactly two years after they tied the knot at Affleck’s Georgia mansion in 2022; they are seen in 2021
Speculation grew even higher when she attended the premiere of her film Atlas solo, after which she put her tour on hold to spend time with her family.
The couple then spent the summer apart, as Affleck failed to show up for his wife’s lavish Bridgerton birthday party in August.
News of their separation finally broke last month when Lopez filed for divorce.
Lopez and Affleck were engaged in the early 2000s but then split. They reunited and married in July 2022. They had another wedding ceremony a month later.
Their initial two-year romance was widely publicised in the media and the couple struggled to cope with the intense scrutiny of their relationship.
In her music documentary The Greatest Love Story Never Told, she said: ‘Ben and I broke up three days before our wedding and we just cracked under the pressure. You think you’re doing great, so you brush it off.’
While they were in the process of reconciling, two-time Oscar winner Affleck admitted he had no interest whatsoever in taking a prominent place on his wife’s social media accounts.
“When we got back together, I said, ‘Listen, one of the things I don’t want is a relationship on social media,’” the actor recalled.
“Then I realized it’s not fair to ask. It’s like, you’re going to marry a captain and you say, ‘Well, I don’t like water.'”
He continued: “We’re just two people with different approaches trying to learn to compromise.”
Affleck and Damon have been friends for more than 40 years. They made their big breakthrough in 1997, winning the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for Good Will Hunting (pictured).
Lopez acknowledged Affleck’s discomfort, telling viewers, “I don’t think [Ben] is very happy that I do all this. But he loves me, he knows that I am an artist and he will support me in every way possible.’
DailyMail.com previously reported that Damon was concerned about the revival of the relationship and warned Affleck that there “could be a rift”.
“Matt was there to help Ben get their lives back on track after their first breakup, but he had a feeling it would happen again,” the source said.
Affleck and Damon have been friends for over 40 years. They first broke through in 1997, winning the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for their film Good Will Hunting.
The good friends are scheduled to promote another film starring Lopez in the coming months: a musical film, Kiss of the Spider Woman, which she is also co-producing.