The Oscar winner got candid about his attempt to cast the Alias alum in his sixth directorial feature Animals, which centers around the kidnapping of a Los Angeles mayoral hopeful’s son.
Garner would’ve played the candidate’s wife, whose marriage is strained.
“I thought, ‘God, Jen Garner would be amazing for this role,'” Affleck told Entertainment Weekly in an interview published Sept. 14, explaining there was also the “added benefit” that they could spend more time with their kids Violet, 20, Seraphina, 17, and Samuel, 14. “I thought, ‘Well, we can coordinate our schedules around it.'”
However, the Argo director’s plan started to fall apart when production was pushed back to a later date, and his longtime friend Matt Damoncould no longer play the husband due to his filming schedule for The Odyssey.
And when Affleck ultimately decided to step in and replace Damon in the role, he “talked to Jen, and she was like, ‘We don’t wanna do that. You just get baggage.'” So, she opted not to play an onscreen couple with her ex.
The role ultimately went to Kerry Washington, who toldEWthat she was intrigued about how there was a “pretty horrible dynamic” between the husband-and-wife characters.
“It was exciting to see the journey of their marriage through this traumatic unfolding of events,” she said. “There are certain couples where, when tragedy strikes, or there’s a crisis at hand, it either moves them closer together or breaks them apart.”
Jeff Vespa/VF14/WireImage
Still, Affleck “would love” to collaborate with Garner—who he broke up with in 2015 following 10 years of marriage—once again after costarring in 2003’s Daredevil.
“She’s fabulous, and we’re really good friends, and I’m profoundly grateful to her, and we have a great thing,” he raved. “I still would wanna work with her in the future, but what you don’t wanna do is take the audience’s baggage and have it work against you, you know?'”
For more celebrity exes who remained friendly after breakup, read on.
Jennifer Aniston & Brad Pitt
No, they are never, ever, ever getting back together. But at this point—between the birthday parties, the friendly embraces and even freaking acting out a sexual fantasy in a star-studded virtual reading of Fast Times at Ridgemont High—it feels like the former Hollywood golden couple is just taunting us.
Sarah Silverman & Jimmy Kimmel
You know you’re cool when you can pop into your ex’s talk show and give him a hard time. Such was the case when Sarah turned up on Jimmy’s stage to chat about her new show, I Love You, America and his “cute,” “bright,” “funny” wife Molly Kimmel. “It’s not fair!” she cracked. “She gets, like, new woke Jimmy. I had Man Show Jimmy.”TBH, we might still be mourning this relationship harder than either of its participants. Because when Anna—now married to cinematographer Michael Barrett—heard that Pratt was set to wed Katherine Schwarzenegger in 2019, she offered to officiate. She even sent over a gift after the newlyweds welcomed daughter Lyla in August 2020. Thrilled for son Jack to become a big brother, a source told E! News at the time that Anna “is very supportive.”
Tarek El Moussa & Christina Hall
It would have been super easy for the exes’ relationship to become a flop. But more than four years after a messy split, the HGTV stars are still killing it at two projects: parenting kids Taylor and Brayden and turning run-down properties into someone else’s dream home.
Lisa Bonet & Lenny Kravitz
Literally “best friends” as the rocker put it in a 2013 interview with Oprah Winfrey, the parents to actress Zoe Kravitz still consider themselves kin. “We’re one big happy family,” Lenny said of his ex, who went on to wed Jason Momoa before their 2020 split. “It’s beautiful, and it just shows you what can be done.”After the Dancing With the Stars co-host and former hockey player called in quits in 2020, the pair have continually proved they are on good terms.When Brooks’ announced his engagement to Katrín Tanja Davíðsdóttir in December 2024, Julianne celebrated the news, writing on Instagram, “I’m so happy for you both as you step into this beautiful new chapter together. Wishing you both a lifetime of love, laughter, and endless adventures.”Months later, the dancer and her ex-husband, alongside his pregnant now-fiancée, spent the day together on the lake, posting a pic herself with them with the caption, “Special day on the lake with these three cuties.”
Ben Affleck & Jennifer Garner
Since their 2015 breakup, the parents to Violet, Seraphina and Samuel have hit the conscious uncoupling trifecta: Joint vacations, shared holidays and public displays of admiration with Ben dubbing his ex “an amazing mother” during a 2016 interview with E! News.
Nina Dobrev & Ian Somerhalder
Nina and Ian may have called it quits in 2013 after three years of dating, but they’ve remained close friends since then. In 2014, the Vampire Diaries star started dating Nikki Reed and tied the knot later that year. Naturally, Dobrev befriended the Twilight actress.The two called it quits in July 2016 after five years together. The singer said on SiriusXM’s The Howard Stern Show the following October that she’s “very close” to Kinney, adding, “He’s been my lover and a friend for so long.””We love each other,” she said. “That’s it.”
Mindy Kaling & B.J. Novak
The Office’s on-and-off pairing remained so tantalizingly close after the series wrapped in 2013 that even Mindy gets why people are still shipping them. “If I was on the outside looking at it, I would think the same thing,” she told Good Housekeeping in 2019 of naming him godparent to her kids. “But the truth is that B.J. is so much more like family now than a platonic friend.”
Ashlee Simpson & Pete Wentz
The exes had no trouble coparenting their son, Bronx, after finalizing their divorce back in 2011. The Fall Out Boy singer has even said his former wife is “an awesome mom.”
Miley Cyrus & Nick Jonas
So she’s over those “7 Things” then? The JoBro musician has said he’s “really friendly” with his ex. “We’ve got a good relationship.”
Michael C. Hall & Jennifer Carpenter
The Dexter stars first met on set in 2006 before things got romantic in 2008. And although they divorced in 2011, Jennifer assured there was “nothing but love and respect” between the exes a few years later.
Bruce Willis & Demi Moore
Long the gold standard of copacetic exes, the parents to daughters Rumer, Tallulah and Scout remain so tight that the decision to ride out coronavirus stay-at-home orders together in Idaho was a no-brainer. Quarantine dance party anyone?
Jennifer Lopez & Marc Anthony
Some four years after their 2014 divorce, Lopez was still giving her former spouse, dad to her twins Max and Emme, props. “While I was married to Marc, he really helped me with my confidence and he saw where I suffered,” she said on a 2018 episode of Sunday Today. “He was like, ‘You’re a great singer. Don’t ever let anybody tell you you’re not a great singer.’ And I respected him so much ’cause I consider him one of the best singers of all time.”
Courteney Cox & David Arquette
Even if it hasn’t been his day, his week, his month or even his year, the actress will be there for her former husband and Scream costar. “I mean, as divorces go, I would say it’s one of the better ones. For sure,” she shared on Running Wild With Bear Grylls eight years after their 2010 split. Raising daughter Coco, she continued, “We’re good co-parents together.”
Cameron Diaz & Justin Timberlake
Their real life romance may have fizzled in 2007. However, that doesn’t mean the two couldn’t heat up the screen in the 2011 movie Bad Teacher.
Peter Facinelli & Jennie Garth
Sure, the initial few months of their 2013 split were rough going, but the actors have now reached the group vacation stage of their divorce. “I really like her husband and I think he’s a great guy,” the Twilight alum told LaPalme Magazine of a 2017 trip to Cancun that included Garth, Dave Abrams, Peter’s now-fiancée Lily Anne Harrison and their three daughters Luca, Lola and Fiona. As for his relationship with Jennie, he continued, “People come into your life for a reason and relationships can change,” he told LaPalme. “Just because we aren’t living together doesn’t mean you can’t love each other.”
Will Arnett & Amy Poehler
Despite a surprise separation in September 2012, the couple decided to put on a united front for their children. “As you know, Will and I are very, very good friends,” she explained during a 2014 interview with Howard Stern. “We are doing a really good job. I don’t think a 10-year marriage constitutes a failure. I think relationships are really tough.”The Grammy winner and her ex-husband—who finalized their divorce in January 2024—have remained on good terms as they continue to parent their son Hayes. In fact, the songwriters live just five minutes apart from one another, which makes co-parenting a breeze.”Our stops are really easy,” Maren told The Zoe Report in May 2025, “and we’ll have family dinners.”
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