Ben Affleck Returns to L.A. With Jennifer Garner Hours Before Jennifer Lopez Divorce Filing

Ben Affleck was spending time with ex-wife Jennifer Garner just hours before his estranged wife, Jennifer Lopez, filed for divorce.

The Gone Girl actor, 52, flew back to Los Angeles on August 20 after he and Garner, 52, dropped off their eldest child, Violet, at Yale University in Connecticut, according to People. The exes – who were married from 2005 until 2018 – were photographed arriving in L.A. together, while they got into the same car and left together.

Affleck and Garner were spotted together just hours before Lopez, 55, filed for divorce with the Los Angeles Superior Court. Not only did she file the paperwork on the second anniversary of their lavish wedding at Affleck’s estate in Georgia, but she also revealed they had been broken up for a while by listing April 26, 2024, as their date of separation.

Lopez filed the paperwork without a lawyer, and she didn’t indicate if they had agreed to a prenup.

In Touch was the first to break the news that Affleck and Lopez were “headed for a divorce” in May, adding that he had already moved out of their shared home.

“He’s focusing on his work and his kids now,” the insider shared at the time. “Ben already moved out and they’ll likely have to sell the dream house they spent two years searching for. They’ll never stop loving each other, but she can’t control him, and he can’t change her. There’s no way it could have lasted.”

While neither Affleck nor Lopez shared information about their relationship status, they hinted at their split by spending most of the summer separately and ditching their wedding band on several occasions.

Meanwhile, Affleck was reportedly leaning on his friends and Garner to get him through the difficult time.

Back in June, an insider exclusively told In Touch that the 13 Going on 30 actress had been by her ex-husband’s side amid the split. “Jen’s been wonderful. She doesn’t judge,” the source shared. “Sure, Ben drives her crazy sometimes, but there’s an unbreakable bond there. Ben says Jen’s an angel and tells her she’s the only one who can save him.”

The insider added that many of Affleck’s loved ones were “worried [he would] fall apart and relapse” due to his marital woes with Lopez. “That’s one of the reasons why she’s keeping close tabs on him,” the source said about Garner. “She’s spending time with him, being a good listener. No one wants to see Ben succumb to his old self-destructive habits.”

Not only did Affleck and Garner reunite to take Violet, 18, to college, but she was also spotted visiting his home several times in recent months. Garner was recently seen at his rental home in Brentwood, California, on August 15, and she was even spotted letting herself into the property on June 15.

“He’s given Jen the code to his house so she can come right in,” an insider previously told In Touch about Affleck. “Other people have to be buzzed in, but not Jen. She can come and go whenever she wants.”

In addition to Violet, the former couple shares kids Fin, 15, and Samuel, 12.