Ben Affleck Expresses Gratitude for Thanksgiving with Jennifer Garner Amid Jennifer Lopez Divorce Rumors

This reunion between the former couple took place amidst a significant period for Affleck, who is in the process of divorcing his most recent wife, Jennifer Lopez.

On Thanksgiving Day, a body language expert observed a marked contrast in Ben Affleck’s demeanor while with Jennifer Garner compared to his appearance during the final days of his marriage to Jennifer Lopez, noting a visible increase in his happiness levels.

Affleck was recently spotted spending Thanksgiving Day with his ex-wife, Garner, and their three children amid his divorce from Lopez.

According to Page Six, Affleck and Garner, alongside their three children, volunteered and served at the Midnight Missions charity campaign, where they fed 2,000 homeless individuals in downtown Los Angeles.

Later that day, the Oscar winner was photographed walking to Garner’s home for dinner in a cream-colored button-down layered over a white undershirt, paired with blue jeans and two-toned high-top sneakers.

A source told the news outlet that Affleck “felt blessed” to spend Thanksgiving with Garner and his children, adding that he “can just be himself” around the “Elektra” actress.

“Even though Ben and Jen have been split for a while now, he feels a certain level of comfort with her,” the source shared. “Ben has a strong relationship with Jen that will never dissipate because they have a lot of history together, and she’s the mother of his kids.”

The source also noted that the former couple have spent other Thanksgiving holidays together since their separation.

Affleck and Garner’s paths crossed on the set of the movie “Pearl Harbor” in 2000. The duo tied the knot in 2005 but eventually divorced in 2018. They share three children: Violet Anne, Seraphina Rose, and Samuel.

The ex-couple has prioritized their co-parenting effort ever since, as none is ever absent from their children’s lives for special events like when they all jetted out to New Haven, Connecticut, to help Violet settle down for her freshman year at Yale University.

However, it seems the “13 Going On 30” actress learned a valuable lesson from her previous marriages.

In a recent appearance on the “Lipstick on the Rim” podcast, Garner took a swipe at her ex-husbands, Affleck and Scott Foley, whom she married from 2000-2004, as she opened up about her experiences from her broken marriages.

She was asked what her “favorite quote or mantra” was, and she said, “Never expect a man — don’t marry a man thinking you can change him.”

The actress also revealed two of her other favorite sayings: “Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes in the morning” and “Happiness is your own responsibility.”

Meanwhile, body language expert Judi James contrasted Affleck’s body language in his Thanksgiving outing with Garner against the final days of his failed marriage with Jennifer Lopez.

According to the Daily Mail, James said that the “Batman” star’s “demeanor suggests he is where he wants to be, without any pressure to perform as an A-lister.”

“His smile registers a fun, playful approach, and at one point, he whispers in Jennifer’s ear in an act of intimacy,” the expert explained. “Ben is in pure alpha mode here, standing with arms folded and head cocked, looking immersed in the event, in contrast to his rather disconnected public signals with J-Lo.”

It comes amid his ongoing divorce from the “Let’s Get Loud” singer after she filed for a divorce from him on their second wedding anniversary in August.

Of that marriage, James added that he looked “so dour and irritable,” but that with Garner, “he looks relaxed and in charge of the event.”

According to the Daily Mail, James, in her explanation of the “Gone Girl” actor’s body language, said he “looks happy and comfortable fitting back into the family unit.”

“Both he and his ex-wife Jennifer are smiling here and apparently happy to be photographed, with none of the rejection signals Ben had tended to display towards photographers until recently,” she shared

“Ben looks happy and comfortable fitting back into the family unit, as though the high levels of A-list fame he achieved with J-Lo were a burden that he struggled to cope with, just as he had the first time he was in a relationship with her,” the expert added.

In August, Garner’s boyfriend, John Miller, was said to have struggled as she acted as a “marriage counselor” and “mediator” for Affleck in his marriage troubles with Lopez.

“John doesn’t like sharing Jen, and there is a divide when it comes to her and Ben,” a source shared. “He wishes it wasn’t like that because he understands they are a family, but it gets to him like it would anyone.”

“John doesn’t have any fears that they are getting back together — but it has been tough coping with her support for Ben during his split from J.Lo,” they added at the time.