Monday, September 15, 2003 Posted: 4:30 PM EDT (2030 GMT)
(CNN) -- Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck have broken up, at least temporarily, sources close to each of them said Monday.
A well-placed source in each camp told CNN that the two, whose tabloid omnipresence has earned them the combined nickname "Bennifer," have gone their separate ways.
"They are taking a break," said a source close to 33-year-old actress/pop-star/sometime-fashion-designer Lopez.
A source close to Affleck, the star of such films as "Daredevil" and "Armageddon" and winner of a 1998 Oscar for co-writing "Good Will Hunting," confirmed the split.
Last week, Lopez and Affleck announced that they were postponing their wedding, which had been set for Sunday, citing "excessive media attention."
Now, it appears that the 31-year-old native of Boston, Massachusetts, and the Bronx-reared woman who has dubbed herself "Jenny from the block," were already on the rocks.
The wedding would have been her third and his first.
"She really wants to make this work. She really is in love with him," said the source close to Lopez.
Still, the mudslinging appeared to be beginning. The Lopez source said Affleck has "an addictive personality," citing his treatment two years ago for alcohol addiction as well as what the source called an addiction to gambling.
The source close to Affleck denied a news report that he was spotted last weekend in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Despite the two stars' gushing displays of affection in TV interviews, questions have swirled for months around their relationship -- particularly after an alleged encounter between Affleck and a stripper in Vancouver, British Columbia, in July.
Lopez and Affleck insisted there was nothing to the rumor.
It's been a rough summer for the popular MTV video star and People magazine's current "Sexiest Man Alive."
Their first film together, "Gigli," elicited pans from the critics and a poor return at the box office.
But the two said the movie's reception had no impact on their relationship.
Now, the nation may have lost its most entertaining celebrity romance -- and the paparazzi their current favorite subjects.
The fate of Lopez's pink engagement ring -- for which Affleck paid an estimated $1.2 million -- was not immediately clear.
http://www.cnn.com/2003/SHOWBIZ/Movies/09/15/lopez.affleck/index.html
(CNN) -- Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck have broken up, at least temporarily, sources close to each of them said Monday.
A well-placed source in each camp told CNN that the two, whose tabloid omnipresence has earned them the combined nickname "Bennifer," have gone their separate ways.
"They are taking a break," said a source close to 33-year-old actress/pop-star/sometime-fashion-designer Lopez.
A source close to Affleck, the star of such films as "Daredevil" and "Armageddon" and winner of a 1998 Oscar for co-writing "Good Will Hunting," confirmed the split.
Last week, Lopez and Affleck announced that they were postponing their wedding, which had been set for Sunday, citing "excessive media attention."
Now, it appears that the 31-year-old native of Boston, Massachusetts, and the Bronx-reared woman who has dubbed herself "Jenny from the block," were already on the rocks.
The wedding would have been her third and his first.
"She really wants to make this work. She really is in love with him," said the source close to Lopez.
Still, the mudslinging appeared to be beginning. The Lopez source said Affleck has "an addictive personality," citing his treatment two years ago for alcohol addiction as well as what the source called an addiction to gambling.
The source close to Affleck denied a news report that he was spotted last weekend in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Despite the two stars' gushing displays of affection in TV interviews, questions have swirled for months around their relationship -- particularly after an alleged encounter between Affleck and a stripper in Vancouver, British Columbia, in July.
Lopez and Affleck insisted there was nothing to the rumor.
It's been a rough summer for the popular MTV video star and People magazine's current "Sexiest Man Alive."
Their first film together, "Gigli," elicited pans from the critics and a poor return at the box office.
But the two said the movie's reception had no impact on their relationship.
Now, the nation may have lost its most entertaining celebrity romance -- and the paparazzi their current favorite subjects.
The fate of Lopez's pink engagement ring -- for which Affleck paid an estimated $1.2 million -- was not immediately clear.
http://www.cnn.com/2003/SHOWBIZ/Movies/09/15/lopez.affleck/index.html
