So Disheartening: Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez to file for divorce: How a 20-year romance came to a heartbreaking end…

When Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez said “I do” on July 16, 2022, the world collectively screamed “Aww” as the couple, who had been 20 years in the making, finally crossed the finish line.

Having first met in 2001 and announcing their engagement the following year, the pair were Hollywood’s sweethearts, so it was devastating for fans when they announced just days before their nuptials, they were postponing due to the “excessive media attention”.

Unbeknown to the then-rising stars and the public, the postponement would last two decades and see Affleck and Lopez both marry and welcome children with other people. Now, after a brief three-year reunion, it appears the A-listers are ready to call it quits once again.

Affleck and Lopez’s love story goes all the back to 2001 when they were cast as the lead actors in Martin Brest’s American romantic crime comedy Gigli.

The film was considered a box office failure, grossing a total of $7.5 million despite its $55m budget, but it wasn’t a complete flop and as well as sparking some feelings between the pair, it helped land them duel lead roles in Jersey Girl in 2002.

Picking up where they left off, Affleck and Lopez’s relationship continued to flourish and they soon began dating, with director Kevin Smith giving them the famed name “Bennifer”.

He told the Daily Mail, “It’s a name I first gave the kids during Jersey Girl pre-production, before the world found out they were dating.” He added, “I’d later drop the name in an interview with the New York Times. Shortly thereafter, it appeared in the article and then entered the vernacular.”

Later that year, Bennifer not only made their red carpet debut as a couple, but they also announced they were engaged to be married. Affleck popped the question with a 6.1-carat pink solitaire diamond.

Lopez soon immortalised their love by dedicating her song, Dear Ben, from her album, This Is Me… Then, to her soon-to-be husband.

Due to marry in September, media attention surrounding the then couple’s nuptials had reached astronomical levels and it seems it took its toll.

Just days before they were due to say “I do”, they instead released a statement announcing the postponement of their wedding. “Due to the excessive media attention surrounding our wedding, we have decided to postpone the date,” they said.

“When we found ourselves seriously contemplating hiring three separate ‘decoy brides’ at three different locations, we realised that something was awry,” they added. “We began to feel that the spirit of what should have been the happiest day of our lives could be compromised. We felt what should have been a joyful and sacred day could be spoiled for us, our families and our friends.”

In early 2004, a representative for Lopez announced the pair had decided to part ways, “I am confirming the report that Jennifer Lopez has ended her engagement to Ben Affleck,” they said.

But while one engagement was called off, another was successful and Lopez went on to marry Marc Anthony that June.

As for Affleck, he found love with actress Jennifer Garner and the pair tied the knot in 2005.

Shortly after becoming a single woman, she told Huffington Post about her relationship with Affleck, “I would do it all over again, I think. I really would. Even the relationship part.

“I just feel like everything is part of your story and your journey and is meant to be and helps you grow if you’re willing to look at it, and I’m willing to look.”

Then, at the 2015 Academy Awards, a reunion between the former couple took place, one that appeared to be rather flirty. Affleck reportedly “whispered in her ear” while, to the delight of fans, Lopez playfully “swatted his arm”.

In 2016, Lopez again spoke about her past relationship, telling People magazine, “I think different time different thing, who knows what could’ve happened, but there was a genuine love there, We didn’t try to have a public relationship.”

While Lopez was reminiscing on the past, Affleck meanwhile, appeared to be dealing with his own struggles.

In 2015, he and Garner announced their intention to divorce. In their decade of marriage, the pair had welcomed three children: Violet, 18, Seraphina, 15, and Samuel, 11 and navigated multiple difficulties, including Affleck’s alleged affair with their nanny.

They finalised the divorce papers with her a month ago, but are waiting for the right time to drop them,” one source claimed. They added, “At that time, they will release a joint statement that will say how they have much love for each other and how they fought to make it work, but couldn’t.”

Another told the news outlet, “Honestly, in the end they could not come to a compromise. What they had before is gone and they have both accepted it.”

The stars are yet to make a formal statement.