LOS ANGELES: Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck have officially finalised their divorce, bringing an end to their two-year marriage.
A Los Angeles Superior Court judge approved their divorce settlement on 6 January, with the ruling taking effect on Friday, 21 February, following California’s mandatory six-month waiting period since Lopez filed for dissolution of marriage, The Associated Press reported.
As part of the legal process, Lopez has dropped Affleck’s surname from her legal name, signifying the formal end of their relationship. Court documents indicate that the former couple reached a settlement through mediation in September 2024, avoiding a protracted legal battle.
The BBC reported that financial details remain largely undisclosed, but neither Lopez nor Affleck will pay spousal support, and no custody arrangements were required as they have no children together.
Lopez, 55, and Affleck, 52, rekindled their romance in 2021, nearly two decades after their first engagement ended in 2004.
The couple tied the knot in an intimate Las Vegas ceremony in July 2022 before hosting a grand wedding celebration in Georgia in August that year.
However, their marriage reportedly faced difficulties soon after, with Lopez citing “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for their split when she filed for divorce in August 2024, as reported by PEOPLE Magazine.
Court filings, cited by Reuters, indicate that Lopez listed 26 April 2024 as the official date of separation. She also requested no spousal support and sought to have her previous legal name, Jennifer Lynn Lopez, restored.
This marks Lopez’s fourth divorce. She was previously married to singer Marc Anthony, with whom she shares twins, and had earlier marriages to Ojani Noa and Cris Judd.
Affleck, on the other hand, was married to actress Jennifer Garner from 2005 to 2018, and they share three children.
The couple’s relationship was initially one of Hollywood’s most talked-about romances in the early 2000s.
After starring together in the films Gigli (2003) and Jersey Girl (2004), they got engaged but called off their wedding, citing intense media scrutiny as a contributing factor.
Their reunion nearly two decades later sparked excitement among fans, but the rekindled romance ultimately did not last.
While neither Lopez nor Affleck has publicly commented on the finalisation of their divorce, sources close to the pair have suggested they remain focused on their respective careers.
Lopez is set to release new music and continue her film projects, while Affleck is engaged in directing and acting commitments.
