Ben Affleck has admitted he had some hesitation about rekindling his romance with Jennifer Lopez in a candid interview where he also opened up about the dark side of his former marriage to Jennifer Garner.
Speaking to Howard Stern, the 'Gone Girl' star said he thought he would "still be drinking" if he stayed with Garner, adding the pair "would have ended up at each other's throats".
Considering his children's needs and the high-profile nature of his divorce, Affleck told Stern "it crossed my mind" when asked if he had doubts about getting back together with Lopez because of the media attention it would cause.
"My responsibility to my children is the highest responsibility. I don't want to do anything that is painful or destructive to them if I can help it," he said.
As for his relationship with Garner, whom he shares three children with, Affleck revealed he felt "trapped" in the marriage, which exacerbated his alcoholism.
"Part of why I started drinking was because I was trapped," he said.
"I was like, 'I can't leave because of my kids, but I'm not happy, what do I do?' And what I did was drink a bottle of scotch and fell asleep on the couch, which turned out not to be the solution."
The Oscar winner said the couple had "tried" to make it work for the sake of their kids, but "took their time" and eventually "grew apart".
"We did our best. I knew she was a good mom, and I hoped she knew I was a good dad. I had to get sober, and I acknowledge that."
Affleck and Lopez, dubbed 'Bennifer' by the press, were engaged in November 2002, a few months after they met on the set of the film Gigli.
The couple called off their September 2003 wedding just days before the marriage was due to take place and officially split early the following year.
The pair delighted fans when they reunited 17 years later in around May - shortly after Lopez announced her split from fiance Alex Rodriguez.
Affleck and his ex-wife Jennifer Garner filed for divorce in April 2017, having first got together in 2004 after working on two movies together.
