Jennifer Lopez confessed she and her husband Ben Affleck still ‘both have PTSD’ from the glare of the spotlight on their first romance.

They dated in the early 2000s, sending their fanbases into a frenzy and attracting a storm of publicity around their infamous mega-flop movie Gigli.

After their broken engagement, they both went on to marry and divorce other people before eventually finding their way back into each other’s arms.

They reignited their relationship in 2021 and got married the following year, once again becoming one of the most talked-about couples in showbiz.

Now, in a candid new interview with Variety, Jennifer revealed that they still bear the cars from their first go-around as a public couple.

She shared that ‘we both have PTSD’ from their initial experience, but explained that in their present life as a married couple ‘we’re older now. We’re wiser.’

J-Lo added: ‘We also know what’s important, what’s really important in life, and it’s not so much what other people think. It’s about being true to who you are.’

At the moment, she is gearing up for the release of her upcoming album This Is Me… Now, a sequel to her 2002 album This Is Me… Then.

The new record will arrive alongside a companion film whose contents remain a mystery, but that will in some way revolve around her marriage to Ben.

‘As artists, we have to follow our heart and this is me following my heart and doing something that maybe everybody didn’t think was the best idea, but I had to do it,’ said Jennifer, whose new album will also be about the marriage.

She declined to specify whether the movie will be a documentary or a scripted project, preferring to leave the reveal until the picture comes out.

‘You have to see it and you’ll have to experience it to understand it,’ the Jenny From The Block hitmaker deftly teased.

‘That’s why I call it a “musical experience.” Because there’s music, you can see it, you can hear it and then you’ll get to live it.’

Jennifer and Ben first became a couple on the set of Gigli and embarked on a relationship that became a flashpoint of attention.

Their eye-catching public appearances, accompanied by the box office disaster of Gigli, were the subject of constant conversation.

Jennifer poured fuel on the fire with the release of This Is Me… Then, which was dedicated to her boyfriend and featured songs about him including Dear Ben.

‘Bennifer’ became a lightning rod for adulation and then mockery, including a memorably acidic parody of them on an episode of South Park.

Trey Parker, co-creator of the cartoon, later asserted he heard gossip that the production assistants started quoting the spoof on the set of one of J-Lo’s films.

‘She got so mad and had to fire people,’ alleged Trey, who is also one of the voice stars on the show. ‘But she kept hearing it in the distance.’

The couple got engaged near the end of 2002 but broke the engagement in late 2003 before ending their relationship entirely in 2004.

In the intervening years, Jennifer married and divorced her third ex-husband Marc Anthony, with whom she welcomed her 15-year-old twins Max and Emme.

Meanwhile Ben married and divorced Jennifer Garner, with whom he amicably co-parents three children – Violet, 18, Seraphina, 14, and Samuel, 11.

A source recently informed DailyMail.com that the J-Lo marriage has helped Ben and his ex-wife ‘get to a better place’ in their own equation.

‘Ben is healthy. The drama of the past and the emotions of divorce are long gone and they are all making it work,’ the insider explained.

Ben’s two wives are apparently ‘friendly’ with one another, and all of the children in the blended family are said to ‘love each other.’

The source shared: ‘It is really a very happy co-parenting situation. Everything is really good right now and should be the same in the near and distant future.’

A previous article on the UK website Closer Online claimed J-Lo was ‘blindsided’ and ‘furious’ at the sight of pictures of Ben and his ex-wife looking friendly.

Meanwhile Ben was claimed to be ‘saying Jennifer’s like his sister at this point and if J-Lo’s going to get jealous and throw tantrums over a harmless cuddle, then the problem’s on her. It’s a real war of attrition here that’s threatening to blow up.’

However, an insider assured DailyMail.com that Ben and J-Lo were ‘very much in love with each other’ and the rumors of tension in the marriage were false. ‘Their relationship is still on fire. They are really happy with each other, and there’s no drama in their relationship right now at all.’