‘The View’ hosts warn Ben Affleck and J.Lo about ‘confusing’ their kids after PDA-filled reunion
They’re taking a skeptical view of Bennifer.
Fresh after filing for divorce from Ben Affleck, 52, Jennifer Lopez, 55, was spotted looking surprisingly affectionate with him over the weekend — but “The View” hosts are warning this could send mixed signals to their children.
During Monday’s episode of the ABC talk show, co-host Sunny Hostin said, “I do feel it’s confusing for their kids, their blended families, and perhaps they’re doing this for their family, you know? And for each other. Maybe they’re giving it a second try, and then maybe those divorce papers will… disappear.”
Hostin was referring to sources telling Page Six that Affleck and Lopez were kissing and holding hands while having brunch with their kids amid their divorce.
In a story published Saturday, the insider told the outlet, “Ben and JLo are currently at the Polo Lounge at the Beverly Hills Hotel holding hands and kissing. The kids are with them, but at a separate table.”
Lopez filed from divorce from Affleck on Aug. 20 after two years of marriage.
The “Jenny from the Block” singer listed the date of separation as April 26, 2024.
Affleck and Lopez were initially together from 2002 to 2004. They ended their first engagement in 2004, and went on to marry and have kids with other people before reigniting their romance in 2021.
The Oscar winner and the singer tied the knot at the Little White Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas in July 2022. They had a second wedding at Affleck’s home in Riceboro, Georgia, on Aug. 20, 2022.
Affleck has kids Violet, 18, Seraphina, 15, and Samuel, 12, with his first ex-wife, Jennifer Garner, 52, who he split from in 2015 after 10 years of marriage.
Lopez is mom to 16-year-old twins, Emme and Max, with ex-husband Marc Anthony.
On Monday’s episode of “The View,” Alyssa Farah Griffin also commented on how the back-and-forth relationship could impact their kids.
“It can be hard and disorienting for kids when they feel like they’re in the grey space in relationships,” she said.
She added that her advice to Affleck and Lopez is to “tell the kids you can have a relationship with whoever, regardless of if this relationship works out, stay close to the former stepparent, the former stepsiblings.”
The rumors that Affleck and Lopez were on the rocks began when she attended the 2024 Met Gala solo.
It was later revealed that Affleck was staying at a separate house from Lopez.
“They started having issues a few months ago, as Jen had started ramping up work commitments and prepping for her tour … They are on two completely different pages most of the time,” a source told Us Weekly at the time.
However, the former couple looked cozy again in their recent outing.
“The View” co-host Ana Navarro was unfazed. She said that just because a couple chooses to be no longer married “doesn’t necessarily mean you don’t love each other and aren’t hot as hell for each other.”
Navarro added, “I mean, who can blame Ben! JLo is looking good. I do like this a lot though, because they were married for a couple of years, they dated before that, they’ve become blended families and they both have teenage kids who’ve become close with each other and are friendly with each other. And so I think it’s good to keep that going.”
Whoopi Goldberg was also relaxed about Affleck and Lopez’s behavior.
“I will say, it is very hard when you have folks who want to go outside. It is very difficult because people like us sit around and we judge it, and maybe we [should] just say, ‘Oh how nice they were hanging out together,’” she said.
The “Sister Act” star added how it’s “very difficult to figure out what’s going on in somebody else’s relationship.”
Regarding their cozy-looking brunch, Goldberg said, “So, I’m assuming that they went out because [their] kids wanted to go out and everybody was doing their thing, and if you’re happy with your family, then you are affectionate with them. It doesn’t mean you’re going home with them again.”
The “Ghost” star continued, “It just means, you know, I’m not so mad at you that I can’t sit across from you.”