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Ben Affleck says tabloids were "sexist, racist" to J.Lo when they were dating

From Harper's BAZAAR

Speaking on the latest episode of The Hollywood Reporter's Awards Chatter podcast, Ben Affleck opened up about dealing with scrutiny from tabloids during his early-2000s relationship with Jennifer Lopez.

Affleck and J.Lo's romance, which lasted from 2002 to 2004, was the subject of many headlines in the early aughts. The two were also briefly engaged.

"You know, there's always a story of the month, and me dating Jennifer Lopez happened to be that tabloid story at the time when that business grew exponentially," the actor said.

"Still, to this day, [some] will go, 'I see you out there in the paparazzi and the pictures!' It's like, 'Yes, I left my house and took out the trash. It's not like I'm trying to—' And it's still like, 'You were taking a pap walk!' As if, if you leave your house, you're only doing so in the hope that you could be so lucky that you could end up as the sixth item in The Daily Mail. It's absurd!"

He went on to disparage the tabloid coverage of Lopez at the time.

"People were so f**king mean about her — sexist, racist. Ugly, vicious shit was written about her in ways that if you wrote it now you would literally be fired for saying those things you said," he said. "Now it's like, she's lionised and respected for the work she did, where she came from, what she accomplished — as well she f**king should be! I would say you have a better shot, coming from the Bronx, of ending up as like [Justice Sonia] Sotomayor on the Supreme Court than you do of having Jennifer Lopez's career and being who she is at 50 years old today."

Today, Affleck is dating Deep Water costar Ana de Armas, while J.Lo is engaged to longtime boyfriend Alex Rodriguez.

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