On Sunday Ben Affleck went to church with his probably on-again wife, Jennifer Garner, and their kids. He was carrying baked goods. We very rarely see him going to church with her so many people are taking this as a sign that they’re back together, or at least that they’re heading that way. It’s been a year and a half since the nanny scandal, they still seem to be living together, (even if he’s in a separate home on their estate allegedly), and they still speak highly of each other to the press. So it could be on again, or this could be one of the most amicable separations we’ve seen. Maybe they’re in that kind of bizarre limbo that many couples find themselves in where they don’t want to fully commit to being a couple again but don’t want to give each other’s company up either. At least they’re keeping it nice for their kids, right? Here are ET’s signs that these two are getting back together.
1. The two attend church together on Sundays and still remain close as a family
On Sunday, Ben and Jennifer were spotted attending church services with their three children, daughters Violet, 10, and Seraphina, 7, and 4-year-old son Samuel. The two have continued to closely co-parent their children together since announcing their separation last year.2. They voted together in the 2016 election
The couple that votes together, stays together? Ben and Jen — both outspoken Hillary Clinton supporters — were snapped voting together at a polling place near their Los Angeles home last Tuesday, proudly sporting their “I Voted” stickers.3. They still live together
Jennifer and Ben, both 44, are still living together in their home in Los Angeles more than a year after announcing their split.“He still lives on the property in Brentwood, California, but in separate living quarters,” a source told ET…
4. They haven’t filed any divorce papers
In perhaps one of the biggest signs Jennifer and Ben could be reconciling is the fact that no divorce papers have been filed since they announced their breakup.
Yes these are obvious signs but ET isn’t telling any lies. We’ve seen all these things for months. It could be true that Ben is just ramping up promotion for Live By Night, but that’s not out until January. These two have reached some kind of truce or understanding or maybe things are good for them again. Marriage is complicated and can be difficult for some couples. It does seem like fidelity should be a basic requirement, but it isn’t for everyone. Some people just want a family and the security they think comes along with that. I know that if I was Jennifer Garner I would have kicked Ben Affleck to the curb a long time ago, but she has her own reasons.
photos credit: FameFlynet
She has 3 good reasons to save her marriage–her children, Yes she also has an obligation to role model self respect…..yet I honestly believe the separation and stepping back and having him re earn his way back in does that. Is there a limit though? I sure hope so, and I hope the entire family is clear on the “no return” boundary.
Seriously I wasn’t ever happier then when my parents divorced once and for all. This whole ‘its better for kids’ stuff is antiquated BS. If they are staying together at this point it’s for themselves not for the kids.
I don’t agree. Statistically, children are less stressed and happier when the parents can reconcile and act cordial while the kids still live under their roof.
With the emphasis being on “when they can act cordial.” Many parents just cannot do that while staying together. I also felt so relieved when my parents split.
I agree……my post should have made clear a healthy reconciliation with an improved relationship — or no go
You’re making a huge leap of logic that he’s changed it was only a couple of months ago that he publicly appeared intoxicated at an interview and a premiere. Seems like the same old same old behavior from both of them and all about their image not what’s best for the kids.
It seems to me she is role-modelling self-respect for her kids very well, regardless of whether she and Ben are tentatively together or amicably split. He treats her well, and he’s involved in the family. There’s nothing there the kids could interpret as their mother putting up with poor treatment, because he’s not treating her poorly.
My cousin, sadly, had a divorce recently where it’s obvious how much better the kids are doing now that mom and dad aren’t in each other’s faces all the time. The boys play, they make eye contact, they aren’t clingy — and none of that was true immediately before the split.
He seems like a drug for her. Whatever – if their arrangement is working out for them and it isn’t hurting the kids, then who am I to judge? People have let others back into their lives for much worse.
Nah, I don’t think they’re back together. They haven’t filed papers for whatever reason but a bigger statement was Ben skipping her Baby2Baby award gala the other night. But he showed up for Matt and Casey’s premiere a couple of nights later. He clearly didn’t think it was important to be there to support and congratulate her.
Or, they’ve agreed not to be a public couple again quite yet.
Maybe she didn’t want him there because then talk of them being together would have overshadowed her moment and accomplishments on her big night.
Even when the were officially together, they hardly ever did any red carpet or events together…besides, if he had shown up, they paps would have just focused on him, and her reward for her awesome work would have been forgotten…
He could have come quietly, not walked the carpet, just been inside and politely decline interviews, saying its her night. Ben knows how to be quiet about things if he wants to.
Didn’t do red carpets together? LOL what kind of revisionist history is this? Of course they did. And that reasoning is completely absurd anyway IMO.
@J Exactly. Like what Casey’s new gf did for the Manchester premiere. Didn’t walk the red carpet but went to the afterparty and whatever for him. I find it really hard to believe that Ben would skip such an important event if he really cared/loved her.
You’re right. They rarely did carpets together – probably no more than 15 during their whole marriage. Ben ‘discreetly’ showing up would have made headlines. I think they’re giving their reconciliation a trial run of years rather than months – they don’t want to recant a second public statement about their relationship because there are children involved.
The most telling sign is that after ET came out with this article / video, (and given that ET is a little more respectable than say the star or ok mag, I would think they might have had some backing from someone in Ben or Jen’s pr team) it’s not being refuted by one of their reps saying, calm down guys…just more coparenting.
If they are able to work it out – kudos and great for them – they do have 3 young children together.
Their reps (or more accurately, Jen’s) had been on the line with Gossip Cop shooting down stories for like a year and it didn’t stop people from speculating or articles like this getting written every other day. There is clearly no point to that.
Gossip Cop aren’t getting sources claiming it’s just coparenting anymore, for what it’s worth
Marriage is different things for different people. If it’s working for them, God bless.
I think at the end of the day she’s still a southern woman and you keep your family together no matter what. I don’t see her divorcing him until the youngest is 18.
By that time they would be married 25 years and she will be almost 60 – does it even pay to divorce then?
It paid for my mum after 36 years. Indeed she waited for us to be in employment and adults.
That’s right! She’s a good girl from Charleston WV (Southern WV is every bit as southern as anywhere else in the south believe me as I’m from nearby) and family is super important. To be honest though, she probably can’t stand the idea of gossip about her failed marriage because if there’s one thing people in WV love, it’s gossiping! I will always love her because she goes home and tries to help our people, most people have no idea how bad it is in Appalachia and wouldn’t care if they did know. I wonder if she did any fundraising for Jim Justice…..he’s by all accounts a fantastic guy and I’m glad he’s governor elect. Maybe they can work together to bring awareness and help to Appalachia.
She is such a doormat
People said the same about Hilllary Clinton. I think a woman’s right to leave a marriage without being judged has to be balanced by her right to stay if she chooses without being judged.
Absolutely agree Annetommy. I would think to stay takes more strength than to walk away. Love is love. I’d like to think it is always worth fighting for.
What’s that quote from Gandhi? “The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.”
100% true.
I can’t hate on her for this – yeah, he’s a bit of a twat, but she has children with the guy who clearly adore their dad, and she obviously loves him. rooting for these two, and hope he stops being a shitbag.
Maybe this is the family structure she needs to have in place so he stays engaged with the kids in a more significant way than just popping in on the weekend. I think he has said in the past that when he’s working, he’s absent.
IF true and it’s a big IF for me since there is literally no love or affection between them in any pics, then ol’ girl is a big disappointment. Continue to be his ashes, Doormat. Take all the umbrage you want. Bless her heart.
Maybe he really has done the work to change and be present in the marriage. Maybe she has learned to be less controlling and more independent. Or maybe once they went their separate ways they realized what they were missing. If she loves him and he rises to the occasion – why does that make her a doormat.
@Sorry….I agree…plus, I have known A LOT of couples, who have weathered the storm of unfaithfulness, and worked hard, and came back to have great marriages.
Of course there’s no public affection between them if they’re trying to keep it private
Oh, these two.
I for one think they had some kind of arrangement long before the sh*t hit the fan. She was probably more upset by the media frenzy than anything, now that the storm has passed and nobody cares anymore, who knows.
Wrap up those cupcakes, or whatever on those baking sheets. Yuk.
Hahaha my first thought!
There is literally nothing new in that ET article. Could have been written a year ago, six months ago, today. They drop their kids off to school and go to church, big co-parenting deal. I think it’s much more telling that he skipped her charity thing over the weekend. I don’t buy the excuse that they’re trying to keep people from speculating about their allegedly-revived relationship. Uh, aren’t people already doing that? They’ve done that for the last year. They voted together (after dropping their kids off to school, again) THEY MUST BE BACK TOGETHER (lol, how stupid). That award was a big deal for her and he didn’t think it was important enough to go. He made it to the Manchester by the Sea premiere for his bestie and his brother, though.
She is always seen going to church alone with the kids. If he went this time, it’s not the norm. Maybe there was some special thing there with the kids.
I don’t believe they are back together.
By my paparazzi calculations, he had not been to church with her since April, before they went to Europe together. He has been photographed going with their kids a number of times since then, but always when Jen was out of town, including the weekend before last.
He tags along when he needs the press. You can always tell when he has a movie about to come out. At least he appears to have showered and worn clean clothes this time?
If you view the entire video on x17video you’ll see that Violet went home with Ben and Jen took the two younger ones to a party after church, they took separate cars. So he was there to be a chauffeur so Violet didn’t have to attend a party for toddlers, now that’s just called parenting not a sign that they’re getting back together. Ben’s actions are loud and clear he makes it painfully obvious that being in Jen’s presence is a chore not a choice, he would rather be anywhere than with her, she must have some good stuff on him for him to stick around and continue to be miserable while his brother is living his life and happy.
Actually if you look at the hollwoodfix video – you see that they all came together in one car. To be honest it looked like there was an issue with violet from the time they came – she was clearly not happy about something, and then later came running ahead of him. (To the point where he asked the paps if they had seen her – ha!!!!). Jen looks to have been picked up by her driver. (In the real world, if we knew we had to split up later and do different things, we would start off with two cars, or time permitting, drop off the people and come later to get them.). It really looks to me like violet was not going with the program and Jen probably said – just take her home etc. – not that I know of course – just surmising as a parent of similar age children.
My guess is Violet was upset to be photographed. She often jumps out of the car and runs ahead of either Ben or Jen to avoid the photographers.
I keep checking their ring fingers, whenever I see pictures of them, to see if they are wearing their rings again. I don’t think that they will make some big, public announcement, if they officially get back together. Just put their rings on, and continue living life the same as always…
Jen has been sporting a ring on her middle left finger occasionally. Looks like a diamond – at the baby2baby gala and again out to lunch with victor garber yesterday.
I’ve always said that I wouldn’t believe they had reconciled until they put their wedding rings back on. Personally I don’t see the point. He can’t keep it in his pants and the next time he publicly humiliates her it will make her look even more foolish. She must enjoy that on some level, maybe being someone’s long-suffering wife is her only tether to relevancy. Strikes me as very pathetic, if true. What a bad example to set for your daughters.
I thought Ben wanted his “freedom.” Here he goes again. As for Jennifer, your choice and good luck!
My personal opinion is that Ben did want his freedom before they split. Basically every story at that time was saying he just wanted out and was pressuring Jen to go ahead with the joint public announcement, which she didn’t want to make. This seems pretty believable when you consider he was caught on video in remote Canada without his wedding ring (supposedly with a woman who wasn’t Jennifer) the day before Jen’s bday in April before the split in July. But I think everything blew up in a way he didn’t expect when nannygate went public. The backlash against him was so swift and severe. Jen emerged as the long-suffering victim and gained new levels of public favor, and I think that changed the dynamics of the split pretty quickly. If nannygate hadn’t come out, I think they’d be divorced by now.
Well, Garner obviously wanted people to see her estranged husband going to church with her because she called the paps (yet again). What does it all mean? Who cares? She’s the most boring celebrity in the world.
There’s an article on Celebrity Dirty Laundry that states Ben has been staging the pap opps because of his new movie coming out and the oscar buzz. He wants to better his chances (just like before with Argo) by improving his image. Go to the site and read it. He wants to be seen as doing everything he can to fix his marriage and win Jen back and be seen as the proper family man. If she is a doormat, oh well…..it is because she loves him and sometimes you do stupid things for love. It is her choice and her being a doormat has no impact on you or I. So respect her right of choice, no matter if you agree or disagree. Sometimes people do the wrong thing but for all the right reasons. So be it.
Unlike most of you I don’t believe that Jen calls the paps. I really don’t. I think they know that she is popular and brings them sure cash from these sites, because despite the fact that most of you don’t like her, you are right on top of posts about her/him and that means business for them. And because she is a sure money getter they stake her/him out and follow them. And yes they know where they are going to be by routine and so go there and wait for them. And I am sure many of you guys are going to jump on that and say then they should change up their routine. Why should they? They have a right to be where they want when they want, as you or I do. They try to live a normal life as if the paps weren’t there. They try to carry on as normal despite them. If you are tired of seeing them papped all the time then don’t look at the pictures.
I don’t believe they call the paps either. The paps know they are”click” bait for their websites, and stalk the shiz out of them!
@ScotiaGirl “And I am sure many of you [guys] are going to jump on that and say then they should change up their routine. Why should they?”
Yes, change the routine! Why?
1) Because allowing their children to be papped this frequently is detrimental to their children! To assume there aren’t serious repercussions from this type of exposure is insane.
2) Because these children don’t have any privacy that they deserve!
3) According to Mommy, their youngest one has already expressed his frustration with the paps.
4) It’s dangerous!
Notice how she walks beside Ben in the photo above. She could wait a few seconds so the paps couldn’t get them in the same photo shot but that’s what they want. It’s deliberate. As actors, they know how they appear – how to position themselves in front of cameras. They do it for a living.
No, Jen no longer needs to call the paps. She simply drives to them! Every. Single. Day!
How should they change their routine? By not arriving and leaving school at the allocated times? By going to church somewhere different every Sunday, thus eliminating to opportunity for the children to feel part of a community?
You thinks paps are hanging around church parking lots looking for some home baking? LOLs me.
@The Original G Yes! The paps wait in the church parking lot! How else did they get the photo shot? Did you think Ben took the picture? BTW, also they also wait for them in the parking lot at the farmer’s market every week!
@A
School – How about a back door? Or hire a driver with tainted windows? Surely they can afford it!
Church – Spoiler alert – There’s more than one church in the USA! How about attend different one to confuse the paps? Or how about trying to go through the Rectory? Churches have more than one service. Try a new one!
And how about if you want to buy coffee, ask one of the MULTIPLE nannies to get it for them to avoid the paps?
They put NO EFFORT whatsoever to even reduce the paps for the sake of their children! It’s deliberate. It’s a choice.
Where are Ryan Reynolds’ children? How is it Ryan and Blake can figure out how to purchase a cup of coffee without the paps?
OMG you are monitoring how close they are while walking side by side. LOL! Look at the other pictures they are a mile apart, they eventually came to a narrower passage so had to walk closer to get through. You actually think they strategize how they walk into church. This scutiny is as invasive as the paps lol.
Can we agree to disagree cause there is always going to be somebody who picks apart every little aspect of what they say or do. They are dammed if they do and damned if they don’t. We, discussing them to death, are invading their private lives just as much as the paps. So we are just as guilty. Me included!
Part of me wants them to get back together because I thought they were adorable together when they appeared happy. Part of me thinks she should throw him to the curb because he has cheated on her sooooo many times. Part of me thinks she is being a doormat and not setting a good example to her kids. Part of me things that she would not be setting a good example by not trying, IF the opportunity is there, to work it out and show her kids that love and family is worth fighting for. I have so many conflicting views on them, but really it is none of my business and I don’t know what goes on behind THEIR closed doors. I do think that she still does ADORE him, and that even though her brain is telling her to end it, her heart is beating stronger. Love is love and people try to hang on to it. Maybe she would rather take ANOTHER chance rather than have to live with regret of wondering if THAT time might have been the time it would have worked out. Who knows how many times she will try til she eventually gives up or it does indeed work out.
It appears to me that at times they do try to change up the routine – ie for a while there were pics everyday if Ben and Jen walking back from the school. (I think the paps are limited by the law how close they can get to the school). Then there were different days where there were pics of ben, Jen and Sam coming out of a coffee shop together. Then for a few days there were pics of Ben in the car with Sam and Jen in the coffee shop. So maybe they stopped parking and walking to the school and just drop them off in front where the paps can’t go. Then you would see them later doing the coffee thing, then they tried just having Jen go into the coffee store – and it’s not the same one every day – it’s different ones. So after all this analysis, I think they do try to change it up, but there obviously is interest so they keep going after the photos.
Why would she want to role model this type of relationship for her kids? Especially her daughters. It’s such an unhealthy dynamic. It’s not as though her kids would suffer financially because of a divorce.
@ScotiaGirl – You monitor and comment more than I do by far on this site. You go further than I by commenting on their feelings within their relationship. I do not. You follow the Afflecks like some kind of bizarre disciple.
It’s not what you say, it’s what you fail to say.
You’re switching the topic to their relationship because cannot address my obvious, inexpensive and simple suggestions for them to reduce the deliberate daily papping of their children. You can’t even respond to a simple question as to why Ryan Reynolds isn’t papped daily with his children. What? You think they don’t drink coffee?
Please don’t assume I’m alone in my observation. People all over this country comment that Jen Garner either call the paps (DAILY) and/or drives to them (DAILY) including this site – today. Even the tabloids make note of Ben’s obvious use of his children to create an image to win awards and sell movie tickets.
It is because for whatever reason people the “minivan” majority fell in love with the Garner-Afflecks back a few years ago and the pictures of Ryan Reynolds and others do not generate the same interest or hits on these sites so their pictures are not worth as much or as big a seller as G-A. Also people love to hate Affleck so look for anything scandalous. I don’t know why but its just the way it became.
You could be absolutely right and she does call the paps, I have no way of knowing for a fact, and I am just surmizing. I admit that. And if she does it is wrong.
@ScotiaGirl
“It is because for whatever reason people the “minivan” majority fell in love with the Garner-Afflecks”
Did the “minivan” majority always exist? No. She created it through this deliberate papping.
“Ryan Reynolds and others do not generate the same interest or hits on these sites”
That’s hilarious and false. So why did GQ put him on the front cover this week? Because no one is interested in him or his family? LOL There’s a HUGE interest in him. Ryan Reynolds is coming off the biggest hit of his career and in the film industry right now. Deadpool was a huge hit (you know, bigger than Batman and the Accountant.) Blake just finished filming for Woody Allen and just gave birth to their second child. There is a huge interest in him and his family and he simply chooses not to allow his innocent children to be papped every. single. day. Will they ever be papped? Yes, probably at some point but not every. single. day.
I notice you still have absolutely no explanation or comment as to why the Garners-Afflecks don’t at least attempt the list of ways I provided to reduce the daily papping. I have more suggestions when you do. Children of politicians use some of the techniques to avoid the papping everyday. The thing is the parents have want to stop or reduce the papping.
Hey, if Jen says she doesn’t call the paps, then I suppose people like you will believe she doesn’t. I must have it all wrong. There are no financial benefit from being papped daily. Where’s the motivation? The paps are simply a conincidence. Jen is desperately trying to shield her children from the paps. You can tell from the smile in the photo above. She had no idea paps were in the parking lot when they arrived. Jen and Ben are actually ducking into a side door. You can tell. She looks so shocked in the pictures above as she walks next to Ben carrying food. Oh, and Ben has to carry the food into the church. He can’t afford to have someone carrry it in for them so he could run into a side or back door. They are trapped. They had no other choice but to stroll in front of a pack of paps holding food for their parish. LOL
mire usted – you need to calm down JFC!! Take your meds.. blahblahblah…
@ mire usted hahahaha Jen Garner “drives to where the paps are daily” OMG, are you friggin kidding me with that??!! ” Hi this is Jen Garner, is this a paparazzi, can you tell me your location? thanks I’ll be there shortly with my kids, please be ready to shoot away”… OMG
They did church and even Farmer’s Markets together quite a bit last Fall, after the split, so this isn’t new. It’s just that Ben has been away in London for months, so we haven’t seen it a lot recently. That said, I think they’re back together. All that’s left are the rings. I also agree that they don’t want to publicly confirm this because they don’t want the public pressure or to have to go back and retract it if it doesn’t work out. I think the path will be long and hard and not the best outlook for a marriage plagued with such serious problems for so long, but …
Last fall was to show what great coparenting we are. Whether he was in London or not, Ben has not gone to church with her (he has with the kids) since the spring – Easter and 1 other time before they went to Europe. There have been plenty of Sundays in the last 6 months that Ben has been in town and Jen has taken the kids to church on her own.
BS!
Gossip Cop has finally spoken, but it’s hard to tell if they’re denying just the pregnancy rumor or the reconciliation also. They say the latter, but if so, why haven’t they denied any of the recent stories…
Star mag apparently came out with a crazy story about her being pregnant that had to be denied. Of course they also denied a reconciliation ….I don’t think they would be confirming it even if it were true.
Agree, of course they wouldn’t confirm a reconciliation, but they didn’t have to go the extra step beyond saying she’s not pregnant to separately also say that they’re not calling off the divorce, which is what they said. Who knows.
Another gossip cop denial – 2 in 2 days. This time denying radar story which was identical to the story published by the natl inquirer (not star mag – my mistake). Interesting – this time they only deny the pregnancy.
Noticed that. Hard to tell if it means nothing or something. I thought it was telling when GC posted the denial about Ben flirting with Anna K, they said Jen wasn’t upset because she knew it was just part of promoting movies instead of also mentioning that she wouldn’t care anyway since they’re estranged. (GC did say the latter when Radar published the story about Ben flirting with a woman on the street while Jen was out of town.) But then in yesterday’s post, they said they’re not calling off the divorce. Different today. All over the map.
I don’t think any of it means anything. It’s just fun and entertaining to watch. I was looking at some pics of Jen on zimbio today. She is wearing her left sleeve all the way down, holding it with her fingers deliberately covering her entire hand. I don’t think she actually has a ring on it, but it’s funny the way she does this at times when she is photographed, like she wants people to ponder if she does have a ring on.
Breakfast,couple’s therapy,dinner with her parents.. Gossip Cop says there is a lot of love there..
I totally agree!!!