Ben Affleck enthusiastically shared how his wife Jennifer Lopez helped him understand fashion for his new film Air.
Beefcake, 50, both directed and starred in the film, which blows up the story behind Michael Jordan’s partnership with Nike.
In a recent interview, he was asked how J-Lo influenced the script, and he gushed in response, “Oh my god, she’s brilliant.”
He added, “She is incredibly knowledgeable about how fashion is evolving through culture as a confluence of music, sports, entertainment and dance.”
J-Lo “helped me talk about how part of the reason Jordans have been so significant is that culture and style in America is 90 percent black culture,” Ben told the Hollywood Reporter.
Power couple: Ben Affleck enthusiastically shared how his wife Jennifer Lopez helped him understand fashion for his new film Air; They are pictured at the 2021 Venice Film Festival
Smoldering: Beefcake, 50, both directed and starred in the film, which explores the story behind Michael Jordan’s partnership with Nike
“Black culture has historically pioneered music, dance and fashion, and it’s then been stolen, appropriated, remarketed as Elvis or whatever. And in this case [Nike]a white-owned company, began doing business with African-American athletes to sell identities,” the actor and activist explained.
“They really valued what Michael Jordan represents and who he is. I don’t think the importance can be overstated. They’ll go from, “Hey guys, we’re a nice shoe” to, “If Mike’s got it, you want it.”
Ben leads the cast of the picture as Nike co-founder Phil Knight, along with his old pal and collaborator Matt Damon as Sonny Vaccaro, the shoe salesman who took it upon himself to recruit then-rookie Michael Jordan.
Written by Alex Convery, Air’s screenplay was included in the 2021 Black List, an annual ranking of unproduced screenplays favored by industry executives.
Amazon Studios snapped up the project the following year, resulting in a completed film releasing April 5 with a star cast including Viola Davis, Jason Bateman, Chris Messina and Marlon Wayans.
His heartfelt words come after he finally revealed what wife Jennifer Lopez said to him during a virally tense exchange at the 2023 Grammys in February.
The 50-year-old Oscar winner, whose distressed expression made him a meme on the night, also told The Hollywood Reporter that he was “having a good time” – despite a video of J-Lo, 53, snapping at him and media spread through social media.
The Gone Girl actor – who recently marked a new milestone with the On The Floor hitmaker by buying a new $64 million mansion in Pacific Palisades – was asked by the interviewer if he was bothered by the meme the being filtered through the internet.
The heated exchange: Ben has finally revealed what Jennifer said to him during a virally tense exchange at the 2023 Grammys in February
THE Grammys meme: The Oscar winner, 50, whose distressed expression made him a meme on the night, also told The Hollywood Reporter that he was “having a good time” — despite a video posted by J-Lo, 53 who snapped at him
What Was Really Said: I leaned into her and said, ‘As soon as they start rolling, I’m going to slide off you and have you sit next to Trevor,’ prompting his wife to say, ‘You f***don’t leave’ ; the pair were spotted at the 2023 Grammys in February
‘NO. I had a good time at the Grammys,” he admitted. “My wife was out and I was like, ‘Well, there’s going to be good music. This could be fun.'”
At one point during the awards ceremony, Ben recalled, “I saw it [Grammy host Trevor Noah approach] and I was like, ‘Oh God.’
“They framed us in that shot, but I didn’t know they were rolling. I leaned into them and said, “Once they start rolling, I’m going to slide off you and have you sit next to Trevor.”
Affleck then revealed his wife’s response, which read, “You better not go.” It’s a husband and wife thing,” he jokingly added.
“I mean, part of it is, I’m like, ‘All right, who is this number?’ Like, I’m not keeping up. My wife of course. And yes, it’s your wife’s work event. And I went to events and I was pissed. I left and I was bored,” Ben explained.
“I’ve been going to awards shows and I’ve been drunk, a bunch. Nobody ever said I was drunk. [But at the Grammys] They said, “He’s drunk.” And I thought that’s interesting.”
He explained, “That raises a whole different question about whether or not it’s wise to acknowledge addiction, because there’s a lot of compassion, but there’s still a tremendous stigma that’s often quite inhibiting.”
Ben has notably suffered from an addiction battle with alcohol in the past and has remained sober as of 2020. Speaking to Outlet, he spoke about wanting his fight to be in the public eye.
“I became, of my own free will, one of the poster boys for alcoholism and actor recovery and all that.”
However, he addressed the positive side of the situation. “And the best part is sometimes people call me and say, ‘Hey, can you help me?’ And it makes me feel so good to do that.”
The day after the Grammys, Jennifer took to Instagram to share clips and snaps from the celebrations.
She captioned, “Always best time with my love hubby,” followed by a white heart emoji, suggesting everything was fine the night before.
Oh oh! Their expressions go blank as soon as they realize their interactions took place on camera
Cover story: The 50-year-old Oscar winner appeared in a cover story for The Hollywood Reporter published on Thursday, which also revealed what his wife Jennifer Lopez told him during the show
Upcoming Project: Ben is gearing up for the release of his upcoming feature film called Air, which also stars his pal Matt Damon, Viola Davis and Jason Bateman
All’s well: The day after the Grammys, Jennifer hopped to Instagram to share clips and snaps from the celebrations, writing, “Always the best time with my love my husband
Getting people talking: During the A-list night, Affleck was seen looking completely disinterested next to the gorgeous Lopez, who appeared to be having a great time
One particular moment that spawned a slew of hilarious memes on Twitter was when rock-solid Oscar winner Stevie Wonder watched him belt out Higher Ground. “Ben Affleck looks like he’d rather be at Dunkin’,” one viewer tweeted, citing Affleck’s famous obsession with Dunkin’ Donuts
The funny memes kept coming, with one viewer writing, “Ben Affleck looks like he’d rather be at the dentist.”
“Brilliant”: “Oh my god, she’s brilliant,” the star gushed of Lopez, adding, “She’s incredibly knowledgeable about how fashion evolves through culture as a confluence of music, sports, entertainment and dance.”
Multiple Roles: Not only does Ben play Phil Knight, the former CEO of Nike, in the film, the feature film is also directed by the actor
Ben not only plays Phil Knight, former Nike CEO, in the film, but the actor also directs it.
He is no stranger to the world behind the camera and has notably directed films such as Argo, which earned him an Academy Award for Best Picture.
Jennifer was soon approached again when asked why he didn’t have an Instagram account like his wife. “My wife is a genius,” he replied simply.
“I don’t know if there’s anyone who understands Instagram better than she does,” the star explained, adding that she gave him “advice” before the interview.
“She thinks I’ve become very cautious because of the experiences I’ve had. And she’s right. I look at these things as landmines where if you say something wrong your career could be over,” Ben explained.
“I had a really painful experience giving an interview where I was very vulnerable and the whole recording was something that not only wasn’t right, it was actually the opposite of what I meant,” recalled he adheres to the publication.
The actor could potentially be referring to a 2021 interview with Howard Stern that discussed both his alcoholism and the end of his marriage to Jennifer Garner, which he says was taken out of context.
“The idea that I blame my wife for my drinking. To be clear, my behavior is entirely my responsibility,” he explained.
Star-studded: The film’s premise follows, “the story of shoe salesman Sonny Vaccaro and how he led Nike in pursuit of the greatest athlete in basketball history: Michael Jordan,” according to an IMDB synopsis
Advice: “I don’t know if anyone understands Instagram better than she does,” the star explained, adding that she gave him “advice” before the interview; seen in Salt Lake City in February
Next step: The ‘Gone Girl’ actor recently celebrated a new milestone with the On The Floor hitmaker by purchasing a new $64 million mansion in Pacific Palisades
Ben expressed that the point he wanted to make at the time was, “Everyone who’s been through a divorce asks, ‘How much are we trying?’ we loved each other We care about each other. We respect each other.’
“I was trying to say, ‘Hey, look, I’ve been drinking too much, and the less happy you get, whether it’s your job or your marriage, the harder your life becomes when you do things when you fill a hole, that’s not healthy, you’ll start doing more of those things. I think I was pretty articulate about it.’
Jennifer Garner and Ben were married from 2005 until their divorce was finalized in 2018. They share three children, Violet, 17, Seraphina, 14, and Samuel, 11, whose stepmom Lopez is now.
After tying the knot last year, the actor also became stepdad to JLo’s twins Max and Emme, 15, who she shares with ex-husband Marc Anthony.