Celebrity Jennifer Lopez says she and Ben Affleck have PTSD from media attention during Bennifer 1.0 "But we're older now. We're wiser." By Jessica Wang Jessica Wang Jessica is a staff writer at Entertainment Weekly, where she covers TV, movies, and pop culture. Her work has appeared in Bustle, NYLON, Cosmopolitan, InStyle, and more. She lives in California with her dog. EW's editorial guidelines Published on December 21, 2023 12:23PM EST Excessive media attention led to the demise of Bennifer 1.0 — and Jennifer Lopez says she and Ben Affleck have still not fully recovered. Lopez said she and Affleck "both have PTSD" caused by the intense media scrutiny they endured when they first dated between 2002 and 2004. As such, Lopez was hesitant to put their rekindled romance back in the spotlight with the release of her upcoming This Is Me… Now album and companion film,"but we’re older now," she told Variety. "We’re wiser. We also know what’s important, what’s really important in life, and it’s not so much what other people think," Lopez added. "It’s about being true to who you are." The two first met on set of the panned 2003 crime romance Gigli and were engaged not too long after. But they called it quits in early 2004, citing the excessive media attention. They rekindled their romance in 2021 and got engaged (again) in April 2022, ushering in the era of Bennifer 2.0. Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck. Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic "As artists, we have to follow our heart and this is me following my heart and doing something that maybe everybody didn’t think was the best idea, but I had to do it," Lopez told Variety. Out Feb. 16, Lopez's new album — a sequel to 2002's This Is Me... Then — and companion film has been billed as a narrative-driven and intimate reimagining of the "Jenny From the Block" singer's "publicly scrutinized love life." A "heartfelt ode" to Lopez's journey of "self-healing and her everlasting belief in fairytale endings," the companion film also promises star-studded cameos. "Can't Get Enough," the first single from the new album, drops Jan. 10. Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free daily newsletter to get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more. Related content: From Gigli to Marry Me: A pop-culture timeline of Bennifer Jennifer Lopez recreates Singin' in the Rain scene in preview for new movie about her love life Jennifer Lopez responds to criticism over taking Ben Affleck's last name: 'I'm very much in control'