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The wedding bells are getting loud for Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck. At least according to the singer’s former publicist. Rob Shuter recently revealed to Fox News details about the couple and how happy he is that they rekindle their relationship.
“I think it’s really exciting,” he told the publication. “I think those two are so special. [I believed] they would have always been together. It always felt to me that their love never got away. I was with her writing their [initial] breakup statement that went around the world – I wrote that statement. And when I was writing it, it just felt really sad.”
According to the celebrity publicist, when JLo and Ben went separate ways and called off their engagement in 2004, he had to take a moment to process what was happening. “Celebrity breakups are usually matter-of-fact, but this one made me sit down for a moment,” he continued. “Before I hit send, I just felt this genuine moment of sadness because I felt like these two were meant for each other. I believe they had the right love, but it was the wrong time. There was always something special about them. And I think now is the right moment for them. So I’m really happy that they’re back together.”
Shuter said that the singer, actress, businesswoman, and award-winning actor’s romance has always been honest. “I don’t think there’s enough energy used [as a publicist] to protect those relationships [in Hollywood] that are legitimate,” he explained. “There’s a lot of celebrities who are in real relationships, but the pressures of the job and life come along and ruin it. That’s not unusual for regular people too… And now everyone wants to know all the details, what’s going on in these relationships, what they’re doing in private. I hope now that Jennifer and Ben take some time for themselves.”
Rob said that time has changed, and the pressure both superstars experienced in early 2000 is not the same now. “Back when they were together, they were on every cover of every major magazine, week after week,” he said. “But that hasn’t happened now. The public is still interested in Bennifer, but the world’s media has changed in the last decade. People are now consuming the news on the internet. I’m not diminishing their star power, but that same pressure isn’t there. It’s not as high risk. So they can enjoy themselves.”
The publicist and author also said that if Jennifer didn’t see a future with Ben, she would never be so open and attend to red carpets. “I don’t think either of them would be this open about being back together if they weren’t serious,” he said. “When I worked for Jennifer, she was the boss. I should have been paying her because she runs the show.”
“You may have opinions,” he shared. “She will listen to them. But at the end of the day, she makes her own decisions. And I think this is the case here. Jennifer would not be letting us see them walk together in the park or on the red carpet if she didn’t see a future for them. They could have easily met quietly, dated on the side, and had some fun together. The world would have never known about it. But the fact that they’re allowing us to see this tells me it’s serious.”
Shuter revealed that Lopez knows what she brings to the table despite what the tabloids say. “She’s really comfortable in her own skin,” said Shuter. “And I think that’s her biggest secret of all. Forget the gossip and all the details of her private life. She isn’t fazed by what people have to say about her. She’s the boss.”