Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck have been handling the spotlight differently since finalizing their divorce earlier this year.
Lopez wowed at the Sundance Film Festival premiere of her latest film, “Kiss of the Spider Woman.”
The 55-year-old donned a body-hugging sheer dress, overlaid with a sparkling spider web, fitting with the film’s title.
“Kiss of the Spider Woman” is adapted from a musical based on a novel of the same name, about an imprisoned Argentine revolutionary whose new cellmate regales him with tales of his favorite movie, and its star, played by Lopez, to distract them from their bleak situation.
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“I’ve been waiting for this moment my whole life,” she said of the role, according to Variety.
Artists Equity, Affleck’s production company with Matt Damon, is one of the companies associated with the film, but neither he nor Damon are listed as a producer in the credits.
Lopez’s Sundance appearance is the latest red carpet she’s walked since her and Affleck’s divorce was finalized on January 6.
Affleck, on the other hand, has remained largely out of the spotlight, until this week, when he made a surprise appearance at the Next on Netflix Special Presentation in Los Angeles on Wednesday, supporting a different film from Artists Equity, “RIP,” co-starring himself and Damon.
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“It’s the seventh movie that Matt Damon and my company, Artists Equity, has made, and it really is in a lot of ways the most important for us, because we’ve found some really exciting partners who are really interested in not just what has been but what could be at Netflix,” he told the audience, according to People magazine. “This is exactly the kind of film that we want to champion.”
“Ben and Matt have been a quintessential Hollywood duo, working both on- and off-screen together from the beginning of their careers. Showing support for one another and their shared projects has been a staple we expect to see regardless of who would be in attendance,” Kara Schmiemann, Senior Director, Red Banyan, told Fox News Digital.
“‘RIP’ is a film where Ben has a starring role, in addition to producing, and so the expectation and requirement to appear at this event would clearly outweigh one where he assumed solely a producing role.”
Prior to this week, Affleck’s last publicly photographed appearance was at a Los Angeles Lakers game last November.
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“There has been a great deal of press over the last few months about JLo attending the red carpet alone in gorgeous gowns and garnering a lot of attention after filing for divorce on August 20, 2024,” Kathy Fielder, CEO of Thrive by Kathy Fielder, told Fox News Digital. “JLo filed, and it appears she is ready to move on into this next phase of her life. Ben quite possibly may need a little more time and a little more quiet to repair and figure out his next phase and what that entails.”
The former couple also collaborated on another recent film, the wrestling drama, “Unstoppable,” with Lopez again starring, and Affleck listed as a producer.
Lopez attended all the promotional events for the film solo, with no Affleck in sight.
“Jennifer Lopez dominated the spotlight for ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’ and ‘Unstoppable’ — dazzling with bold fashion as Ben Affleck smartly vanished to avoid focus on their personal lives,” Eric Schiffer, Chief Executive Officer of Reputation Management Consultants, said. “This strategic choice supercharges JLo’s star power and keeps the story deadeye on the films.”
Doug Eldridge of Achilles PR agreed that both stars, and Affleck in particular, don’t want to distract from their work.
“He wants his films—regardless of whether he’s acted, directed, or produced them—to stand and speak for themselves,” Eldridge said. “When you couple that with his dislike for the bright lights and predictably bawdy questions surrounding another break-up, it makes sense why he would take a pass on the promenade.”
He added, “That said, Affleck is deliberate in his public appearances—in some cases to support his friends and long-time collaborators, like Matt Damon, but in other cases to avoid controversy and conjecture, due to an unintended red carpet cross-over with his ex, Jennifer Lopez. (A good publicist would’ve choreographed that so there was no stepping on toes—literally or figuratively.) The former drew positive headlines and coverage from the likes of People Magazine; the latter would’ve drawn tabloid scrutiny and rumination, all of which would have distracted from the integrity of the film he produced.”
Schmiemann said, “The decision for Ben to be less of the front-man promoter is likely two-fold — when you’re a producer and not the headliner, and also feel most comfortable in a behind-the-scenes capacity — there’s likely not too much to infer from these decisions, as it makes strategic sense.”
Eldridge also noted that as a woman, Lopez may be under more pressure to appear in public than her ex. “Additionally, in a very archaic way, an actress must remain visible, in order to remain viable, in Hollywood,” he explained. “When was the last time you saw [Chris] Hemsworth, [Tom] Hardy or Harrison Ford, walking a red carpet for a project they weren’t tied to? By contrast, starlets are somewhat tethered to the red carpet to remind both fans and film studios that they are red-hot and ready for that next role. Hollywood has undergone a radical transformation in the wake of the #MeToo movement, but some elements still remain—good, bad or otherwise.”
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Schmiemann explained that it is ultimately a balance of personal and professional.
“No one enjoys running into an ex when you’re fresh off of a breakup or divorce, regardless of celebrity status. Most of us try to avoid these situations at all costs because the anguish, drama and anxiety is just not worth it. But for those who work with their exes, sometimes it must be done, and I’d have expected them both to be professional if ever they need to share a stage or red carpet together again. However, would the conversation immediately shift to analysis about who said, did, snubbed the other, as opposed to said film — absolutely.
“The buzz will certainly generate widespread attention the first time they occupy the same space publicly — but it’s not necessarily a bad thing for any movie they’d be promoting. In fact, it could very well be strategic to up the ante and draw more attention and views.”
Lopez and Affleck previously collaborated on projects during both rounds of their relationship, first in 2002 with the films “Gigli” and “Jersey Girl,” and last year with the high-concept music film “This is Me . . . Now: A Love Story” and the accompanying documentary, “The Greatest Love Story Never Told.”
In “The Greatest Love Story Never Told,” the distance between their respective relationships with the spotlight became apparent.
In the early minutes of the documentary, Lopez shared that her new music was inspired by a collection of handwritten love letters from Affleck, which she showed to songwriters and musicians working with her.
Affleck admitted there was an irony in making a record about “the greatest love story never told” by telling it so publicly.
“Jen was really inspired by this experience, which is how artists do their work,” he said in the film. “They get inspired by their personal life, it moves you. I know as a writer and director I certainly do the same things. But things that are private I had always felt are sacred and special, in part because they’re private. So, this was something of an adjustment for me.”
According to People, she told the audience during a Q&A screening that her then husband was a “reluctant participant.”
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“In one sense, this is arguably an extension of their base behavior—through every relationship and various stages of her career reinvention(s), Lopez always sought the spotlight, while Affleck held a marked disdain for the red carpets, galas, press junkets, pomp and circumstance of Hollywood. Seeing her attend and him remain absent, is not surprising,” Eldridge said.
He continued, “Affleck is both a farmer and a hunter—he is active on both sides of the camera, with numerous projects in the works at all times. By contrast, Lopez is a pure hunter; she leaves the cave every morning with a spear and an empty stomach; if she doesn’t make a kill, she doesn’t eat. Affleck can choose to hunt while his crops mature to harvest; Lopez must remain visible and, on the move, in order for her career to survive and thrive. Neither of these are indictments on their personality, or professionalism; merely a delineation of their respective approaches to the industry.”
That bears out further, with Lopez speaking more openly about the divorce, and Affleck remaining essentially silent.
In an October interview with comedian Nikki Glaser for Interview magazine, Lopez said “My whole f—ing world exploded,” following the debut of the documentary and the eventual divorce filing.
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Lopez said she had no regrets about getting back with Affleck, but noted that it “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, ‘F—, 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. I get it. You had to hit me really hard over the head with a f—ing sledgehammer. You dropped the house on me. Don’t have to do it again.’”
During the promotion of “Unstoppable,” she also said she related to her character’s struggles with a toxic relationship.
In the film, the 55-year-old played Judy Robles, mother of wrestler Anthony Robles, who was born with one leg and defied expectations to become a NCAA champion wrestler despite facing rejection around every corner.
While Anthony, portrayed by Jharrel Jerome, faces his own challenges throughout the film, the matriarch of the movie also raises four children while dealing with an abusive and unfaithful husband, played by Bobby Cannavale.
“There was a lot about her that I understood,” Lopez told Entertainment Weekly last December. “There were different sides to him that the kids didn’t see, that only Judy saw. “
She continued, “With those types of people, there’s a part of them that fools you into thinking that they care about you and that they truly love you—and it’s really about their damage that they’re putting onto you.”
Ultimately, Affleck and Lopez have been consistent with their respective brands in the wake of their divorce, a strategy that has been working, according to Schmiemann.
“The best plan is always the one that you can execute comfortably. They would not be doing themselves, their movies, reputations or individual teams any favors to force attendance at certain events or be together, front-and-center, for any promotional gigs if tensions are too high, and their visual presence is less than ideal. Ben and JLo have both spent years cultivating their public personas and want to showcase themselves and their work with professionalism and positivity—and keeping their heads low and doing their own things right now is working.”
