Ben Affleck opens up about Jennifer Garner’s nannygate interview
Ben Affleck has finally responded to Jennifer Garner’s nanny-gate interview. The “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” star has opened up about the revealing comments his separated wife made about them.
Garner, 43, was forthcoming with information about her doomed marriage to Affleck without disparaging him in her interview with Vanity Fair in February. She was refreshingly honest about how she loved the father of her three children while still accepting that her 10-year marriage has come to an end. That was her first interview since they announced their intention to divorce in 2015.
Affleck, on the other hand, has been more reserved. A day before his scheduled interview with New York Times, however, Garner’s interview was published. He initially told the paper he wouldn’t speak of his personal life, but apparently had a change of mind when Garner’s piece came out. When the paper asked how he felt about Garner sharing intimate details of their lives, Affleck appeared to be noncommittal in his reply.
“Jen’s great. She’s a great person. We’re on great terms. I just saw her this morning, so that’s the reality that I live in,” he said.
It was highly speculated that their marriage ended because he had a tryst with their children’s nanny, Christine Ouzounian. The so-called nannygate reportedly wasn’t the only reason for their impending divorce, but it was a big part of it. However, Garner rubbished the reports, saying the nanny had nothing to do with their decision.
“We had been separated for months before I ever heard about the nanny. She had nothing to do with our decision to divorce. She was not a part of the equation. Bad judgment? Yes. It’s not great for your kids for [a nanny] to disappear from their lives,” she told Vanity Fair.
For Affleck, it’s fine for Garner to talk about their personal lives, if only so she could finally be done with it.
“She felt like she wanted to discuss it and get it out there and get it over with,” the 43-year-old Academy Award winner said, “so she could say, ‘Look, I already talked about it – I don’t want to do it again.’”
He continued, “It’s fine. She’s allowed to talk about it.”
He wasn’t also offended when people think he was unfaithful. At the Golden Globes in January, presenter Ricky Gervais introduced Matt Damon, his best friend, as “the only person who Ben Affleck hasn’t been unfaithful to.” Damon was visibly trying not to react on the joke, perhaps out of fear laughing at it would make him a bad friend.
Affleck didn’t mind, though. As NY Times has noted, he was laughing when he said, “It’s the way Ricky Gervais perceives me, I suppose. Whatever. I’ve had jokes made at my expense before. It’s part of the deal.”
Garner and Affleck were married in 2005 and have three children together – Violet Anne (born 2005), Seraphina Rose Elizabeth (born 2009) and Samuel (born 2012). They announced their intention to divorce on June 30, 2015, a day after their 10th anniversary.