Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony’s Relationship Timeline, Explained

Jennifer Lopez has been married four times. She’s now married to Gone Girl star Ben Affleck, but the pair dated previously from 2002-2004 and split after postponing a highly anticipated wedding. After “Bennifer” imploded the first time, she quickly began dating and then marrying fellow singer, Marc Anthony.

Amid reports that she and Affleck are living separately and in marital counseling after just two years of marriage, Lopez’s relationship history is back as a trending topic, primarily her marriage with Anthony.

After a decade of marriage, their divorce was finalized in 2014. Here’s a look back at their time together. 

The first meeting

Anthony and Lopez first met in 1998 when Anthony was starring in the Broadway production of The Capeman. In her 2015 memoir, True Love, Lopez said Anthony told her early on, “One day you’re going to be my wife.” They began collaborating on music early on, within a year of their first meeting on the song “No Me Ames” from her 1999 debut album On the 6. Despite their musical chemistry, they didn’t begin dating until years later and both had relationships with other people.

A whirlwind romance after a breakup

Shortly after Affleck and Lopez split in 2004, she ran into the arms of Anthony. Their romance wasn’t as public, but it was quick. According to E! News, Anthony proposed with a $4 million engagement ring, and by the summer, they wed in a quiet ceremony held at Lopez’s Beverly Hills home. Their marriage was filled with musical collaborations.

The family she still desired

Four years into their marriage, on Feb. 22, 2008, Lopez and Anthony welcomed twins. They named them Emme and Max.

The split

In 2011, they announced their separation, promising to keep their children at the forefront. The breakup wasn’t easy. Unlike her previous three marriages, Lopez didn’t have any ties to her exes.  

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In a 2016 interview with W magazine, she spoke about the toll the divorce took. “It wasn’t the dream that I had hoped for, and it would have been easier to fan the flames of resentment, disappointment and anger,” she said. “But Marc is the father of my children, and that’s never going away. So, I have to work to make things right. And that is, by far, the hardest work I do.”

Why they split

A source told E! that Lopez and Anthony’s marriage wasn’t the picture-perfect situation it appeared to be with two kids and Hollywood events. “She tried so hard to make this marriage work,” a source revealed in 2011. “She put up with—and kept putting up with—Marc’s controlling ways, which had been going on for a long time, and she was really trying to make the best of it.”

The lover of love moves on

Lopez didn’t waste any time after her split from Anthony. Her infamous love life continued to be full. She dated dancer Casper Smart from 2011-2016. From there, she dated and was engaged to MLB star Alex Rodriguez from 2017-2021 before reuniting with Affleck.