Jennifer Lopez asks to drop Ben Affleck’s surname in divorce filing

Jennifer Lopez, 55, has requested to return to her maiden name in her filings to divorce actor Ben Affleck, 51. The singer filed for divorce this week after months of rumors, citing “irreconcilable differences,” according to the court documents. In the filing, Lopez requests that her maiden name Jennifer Lynn Lopez be restored, as she does not legally have the surname Affleck. The news was reported by People magazine, which has had access to the court documents.

When the couple tied the knot on July 17, 2022, in Las Vegas, Lopez legally changed her maiden name to Affleck. In an interview with People that year, she said that it was a “romantic” decision and that she was “proud” to be his wife.

“People are still going to call me Jennifer Lopez. But my legal name will be Mrs. Affleck because we’re joined together. We’re husband and wife. I’m proud of that. I don’t think that’s a problem,” she told Vogue.

Still, her decision sparked heated debate. The fact that a woman as well-known as Jennifer Lopez adopted her husband’s last name, even though he was also very well-known, was the subject of opinion columns on both sides of the Atlantic. The New York Times published an opinion piece which criticized Lopez’s move, almost calling it anti-feminist: “And at this fraught moment for feminism in America, a woman like the former Jennifer Lopez deciding to change her name feels especially dispiriting,” wrote novelist Jennifer Weiner.

Lopez responded to these accusations in the interview with Vogue. When asked if she would like Affleck to adopt her surname, she replied: “No! It’s not traditional. It doesn’t have any romance to it. It feels like it’s a power move, you know what I mean? I’m very much in control of my own life and destiny and feel empowered as a woman and as a person. I can understand that people have their feelings about it, and that’s okay, too. But if you want to know how I feel about it, I just feel like it’s romantic. It still carries tradition and romance to me, and maybe I’m just that kind of girl.”

Now, and before the courts, the artist has made a not-so-romantic decision: to reclaim her maiden name just two years after changing it.

After months of rumors over a possible split, Lopez filed for divorce on August 20 in the Los Angeles courts. Although it seems that the separation was formalized on April 26, according to the documents. The singer filed for divorce on the anniversary of the couple’s second wedding, held two years ago at Ben Affleck’s estate in Georgia. A move that did not go unnoticed by the media.

Lopez also indicated in the divorce filings that neither of them wants spousal support and that the issue of assets — who gets what — is still to be decided. According to the U.S. tabloids, Affleck has been sleeping in another house for weeks. Just a year ago, he and Lopez bought a $60-million mansion, with 12 bedrooms and 24 bathrooms, in one of the most exclusive areas of California.

In fact, since the beginning of June that mansion has been on the market for $68 million, and Affleck has already bought a new house. At the end of June, Lopez went on vacation to Italy without her husband; and he took the opportunity to take his things out of the mansion and bring them to his new home.

In mid-July, Affleck did not appear at Lopez’s birthday celebrations in the Hamptons. Emme and Max, her children with Marc Anthony, and several friends were there, but not the actor. In fact, it was that very weekend when Affleck bought his new $20-million mansion in Los Angeles, a move that reportedly hurt the singer. According to outlets such as People, Lopez is especially devastated by the end of the marriage: “She tried really hard to make things work and is heartbroken,” said a close source.

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