Newly single Leah Remini warned J.Lo about Ben Affleck before falling out with singer, her own divorce
This queen was somewhat uneasy about her best friend’s king.
Sources told Page Six in May that Leah Remini reconnected with her former best friend Jennifer Lopez after news of the pop star’s issues with Ben Affleck surfaced.
The “The King of Queens” alum, 54, and the “On the Floor” singer, 55, originally had a falling out over Lopez’s marriage to Affleck.
According to the insider, Remini and Lopez got into a fight before the former couple’s 2022 wedding over Remini’s concerns about the “Air” director.
The “People Puzzler” host warned the artist to remember why she broke things off with Affleck during their relationship in the early aughts.
As for what those issues were? As the source put it, “Because he is selfish and is not fully committed as a partner.”
Meanwhile, a second source explained that Remini had wanted to reconnect with her former best friend for a while during their estrangement.
“They were friends for years. She wants to reach out to her, but she can’t just call up and say, ‘I told you so,”’ the insider shared in May. “J.Lo was so mad, she cut off all ties.”
Now, Remini and Lopez can lean on one another, as Remini announced that she and husband Angelo Pagán have split after 21 years of marriage.
The news comes just two weeks after Lopez filed for divorce without an attorney on the anniversary of her and Affleck’s second wedding ceremony.
Lopez and Affleck tied the knot in July 2022 at the Little White Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas before saying “I do” for a second time at Affleck’s estate in Riceboro, Georgia, the following month, where Remini wasn’t invited.
At the time, sources told TMZ that the actress was busy helping her daughter, Sofia, 20, whom she shares with now-estranged husband Pagán, prepare to head off to college.
Remini and Pagán, 56, announced the news of their divorce in a joint Instagram statement Thursday.
“Well, here we are. After 28 years together and 21 years of marriage, we have decided to file for divorce. This decision came after a lot of thought and care, and as hard as divorce is, we are approaching this with a positive outlook because we know it’s what’s best for us. We are proud of how we have worked through this together,” the statement read.
“Yes, we’re sad, and we’ve got some figuring out to do as we continue to move forward into our new normal — together still in many ways, and apart in some new ones. But here’s the thing: we’ve been best friends for so many years,” they continued. “We are still celebrating holidays together, watching our favorite tv shows together, and gathering as a family.”
The pair also took a moment to explain the decision to separate.
“So, the big question — why? To put it simply, we both changed, as people do, and we got used to playing roles that didn’t fit us anymore,” the statement said.
“After a lot of effort and consideration, we’ve decided to take this step, which reflects who we are today. Our bond is still strong — it’s just evolved into something different. We think a marriage that lasted this long and created so many beautiful memories, especially raising our incredible daughter, is something to celebrate,” they concluded. “From our perspective, this marriage was a huge success. And now, we’re looking forward to creating even more cherished moments — just in a different way.”
Remini and Pagán married in 2003 after meeting in 1996 at El Floridita, a Cuban club and restaurant in Los Angeles.
Meanwhile, Lopez is single after trying to make her romance with Affleck work for a second time.
The Hollywood icons started dating in 2002 and called off their initial engagement in 2004. Lopez and Affleck went on to marry Marc Anthony and Jennifer Garner, respectively, and have kids, but ultimately rekindled their flame in 2021.
After splitting the first time around, the Grammy winner admitted she felt like she “was going to die” and went into an 18-year “spiral.”
But this time around, Affleck’s proposal was completely different. The “Batman” actor engraved special meaning into Lopez’s engagement ring, which is estimated to be worth “well over $5 million.”
“This one he put ‘not.going.anywhere’ because that’s how he would sign his emails when we started talking again,” she explained to Apple Music One’s Zane Lowe in 2022 about her second engagement. “Like, ‘Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere.’”
