Lopez shares twins Emme and Max with her former husband, singer Marc Anthony. Affleck shares three children — Violet, Seraphina and Samuel — with his former wife, actress Jennifer Garner.
During Lopez and Affleck’s marriage, their families spent significant time together.
That history matters because divorce between two adults can affect many other relationships around them. Children may have formed friendships. Families may have established traditions. Professional commitments may continue long after romantic feelings have changed.
For that reason, maintaining civility can be more important than maintaining appearances.
Rather than treating every post-divorce interaction as evidence of reconciliation, it may be more accurate to see such moments as signs that two families can remain connected even after the adults’ relationship changes.
Reports of Lopez spending time with members of Affleck’s family, or Affleck appearing alongside Lopez’s children, have fueled considerable public interest.
But those interactions do not necessarily need to carry romantic meaning.
Sometimes kindness after a breakup is simply kindness.
The Beginning of “Bennifer”
To understand why the public remains so fascinated by Lopez and Affleck, it is necessary to return to the beginning.
