Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner have officially called it quits on their marriage. The couple announced their divorce through a joint statement on 30 June, a day after their 10th wedding anniversary on 29 June.
"After much thought and careful consideration, we have made the difficult decision to divorce. We go forward with love and friendship for one another and a commitment to co-parenting our children whose privacy we ask to be respected during this difficult time. This will be our only comment on this private, family matter. Thank you for understanding," People quoted the statement.
In the last few months, various reports speculating the divorce have been floating around. Buzz about the couple splitting due to Affleck's workload and other reports like the couple having constant fights, living separately, the "Batman V Superman" star being spotted without a wedding ring and "The Dallas Buyers Club" actress spending birthday alone, have all strongly pointed towards the inevitable.
According to the latest reports, the "Daredevil" co-stars who fell in love on the sets of the film in 2003 and married in 2005, said this was a mutual decision and that they are trying to sort out the legalities as amicably as possible.
"They don't want this to be War of the Roses. They want it to be simple and this takes the drama out of it. It is important for them to keep this nice and efficient for the sake of their family," a source told US Magazine.
Affleck and Garner, who have three children — Violet, 9, Seraphina, 6, and Samuel, 3 -- together, have been apparently having marital issues for the last few months and were considering the divorce for quite some time now.
"Things are not all peaches and cream with them. They've been married for a long time and tried to make it work for many years. They eventually realised this is the best thing to do for their family. They don't want it to be contentious," the source added.
In addition to this, Hollywood Life pointed out that the couple has not been living together for the past few months. "Ben has not been living at home for a couple months, but they have been adamant that they keep the family together for the sake of the children. They didn't want to fracture their world. So they went to counseling and tried to make changes in their lives to heal their marriage but it wasn't enough," a source said.
So, why did they wait until their 10th Wedding anniversary? The report further highlights that Affleck and Garner had to prolong their decision due to judicial reasons. "Generally, in California, a 10-year marriage is 'long-term' which basically allows for courts to retain indefinite jurisdiction over the issue of spousal and child support," family law specialist, Kelly Chang Rickert told the website.
Well, it looks like everyone saw Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner divorce coming.
