Ben Affleck stated on Thursday, October 1, at the premiere of his film Animals that his dating life is not a big priority, focusing instead on his work and three children two years after his split from Jennifer Lopez.
The Bottom Line
- Ben Affleck stated at the Animals premiere that his primary focus is his three children and his work, leaving little room for dating.
- The actor addressed claims made on The View by Ana Navarro regarding a matchmaking attempt with Shakira, stating he had never heard of it and that people make up gossip.
- Affleck and Jennifer Lopez finalized their divorce in January 2025, following a high-profile reunion and marriage in 2022.
Prioritizing Family and Film Over Romance
Speaking to Entertainment Tonight, the 54-year-old actor offered rare insight into his personal life following the conclusion of his marriage. Affleck explained that his schedule and emotional bandwidth are firmly committed elsewhere. “There’s not a lot of room. I’m not running around,” Affleck said, as noted by The News International. “It’s just not a big priority in my life.” He added that he feels happy and settled in a single life, emphasizing that his children—Violet, 20, Fin, 17, and Samuel, 14, whom he shares with ex-wife Jennifer Garner—take precedence over all else. Affleck stated, “You can’t have two things that are the most important in your life. For me, that’s the kids. So that’s what that is. And then I have my work, which I love.” While he noted he is open to whatever adventures life might bring, he stressed that he is not actively chasing a relationship.
Addressing Claims of a Shakira Matchmaking Attempt
The red-carpet conversation also touched upon recent tabloid chatter originating from daytime television. Navarro had claimed on The View that she attempted to play matchmaker between Affleck and Shakira, enlisting Matt Damon’s help during a chance encounter at a Miami concert.
Affleck made it clear that the reported setup was entirely news to him. “I hear [expletive] like that, honestly, first from people like you,” the actor told Entertainment Tonight, as covered by Complex. “I never heard that in my whole life. People gossip. Stuff gets made up.” He firmly reiterated, “I don’t get set up.”
Behind the Scenes of the Matchmaking Claims
Navarro explained on The View that she ran into Matt Damon with his wife and daughters at a Shakira concert in Miami right around the time news broke that Affleck and Lopez were breaking up, noting that Shakira had also recently split from her husband. When co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin pointed out that Shakira and Lopez are friends—having performed together at the 2020 Super Bowl—Navarro admitted that Damon had responded that a pairing “could be complicated.” Griffin interjected to declare, “I want better for Shakira,” adding, “From a dating standpoint, he seems a little messy.” Navarro and co-host Sara Haines even invented potential couple nicknames for the pairing, such as “BenShar” and “ShakEn.” Whoopi Goldberg jumped in to advise against meddling in other people’s relationships, noting that nobody knows what truly happens behind closed doors. Navarro ultimately maintained that enough time had passed where she thinks Affleck and Shakira need to give each other a call.
| Key Event / Milestone | Timeline Date | Context |
|---|---|---|
| First Engagement | 2002–2004 | Affleck and Lopez initially began dating and got engaged before calling it off. |
| Relationship Reunion | 2021–2022 | The pair rekindled their romance and married in July 2022. |
| Divorce Finalization | January 2025 | Official legal dissolution of the marriage following Lopez’s filing in 2024. |
| Animals Premiere Update | October 1, 2026 | Affleck gives a public update on his single status and priorities. |
Reflecting on Public Scrutiny and Future Chapters
The public spotlight has followed Affleck and Lopez extensively since their high-profile reconciliation in 2021, their 2022 wedding, and the subsequent split that led to a finalized divorce in January 2025, as outlined by Yahoo. As speculation regarding his personal life occasionally surfaces on daytime talk shows and across media platforms, Affleck maintains that his current focus remains exclusively on his children and his professional endeavors.
