Jennifer Garner’s Joke About Ben Affleck in ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Wasn’t ‘Vetted By’ Ex

Jennifer Garner made headlines for joking about ex-husband Ben Affleck in Deadpool & Wolverine, and director Shawn Levy has now revealed the Gone Girl actor wasn’t in the loop.

While appearing on the Monday, August 5, episode of the​​ “Happy Sad Confused” podcast, host Josh Horowitz asked Shawn, 56, if he reached out to Ben, 51, for his input about the joke. “No, we vetted it with Jen,” he responded. “That joke, as far as I know, wasn’t vetted by Ben.”

Jennifer, 52, reprised her role of Elektra in the film, which was released on July 26. While talking to Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool character, he expressed his condolences over the death of her love interest Daredevil, who was played by Ben. She then shrugged and simply responded, “It’s fine.”

The joke was clearly a jab at Ben, as he and Jennifer met and fell in love while filming the 2003 film Daredevil. They later tied the knot in 2005 and welcomed kids Violet, 18, Fin, 15 and Samuel, 12, before their divorce was finalized in 2018.

Despite not initially running the line by Ben, Shawn explained that spoke to the Argo actor about the joke before the movie premiered. “I later spoke with Ben because … the end credits have this tribute reel to the legacy of Marvel movies and so that gave us the occasion to speak to everyone because we needed and wanted everyone’s permission,” he added.

Following Jennifer and Ben’s divorce, he moved on with former flame Jennifer Lopez and they tied the knot in 2022. However, it seems there’s trouble in paradise after In Touch exclusively reported they were “headed for a divorce” in May.

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Ben and J. Lo, 55, have not confirmed their relationship status, though they have been spending time apart amid the rumors. Meanwhile, he has reportedly been leaning on his first ex-wife during the difficult time.

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“Jen’s been wonderful. She doesn’t judge,” an insider exclusively told In Touch about the 13 Going on 30 actress in June. “Sure, Ben drives her crazy sometimes, but there’s an unbreakable bond there. Ben says Jen’s an angel and tells her she’s the only one who can save him.”

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Meanwhile, an additional source told Life & Style that Jennifer was happy that Ben’s marriage to the Wedding Planner actress didn’t work out. “Jen was extremely tolerant and always found a way to bite her tongue and be cordial to J. Lo whenever they were in the same room,” the insider claimed. “But truth be told they’re like oil and water, you couldn’t find two people more different.”

While the source said that Jennifer had been “supportive” of the relationship for “Ben’s sake,” they added that “it was no secret she didn’t think he and J. Lo were a good match.”

“She knew it was only going to end in tears, it was just a matter of when and how,” the insider stated. “She’s trying to be diplomatic about it, she doesn’t want anyone, least of all the kids, to be aware that there’s any lingering bad blood between her and J. Lo.”