The actress has opened up about raising her three children with her former husband, saying their co-parenting relationship has given her greater freedom as their family has grown older.
Jennifer Garner has praised her former husband Ben Affleck’s parenting skills.
Describing the Oscar-winning actor, 53, as an “incredible co-parent” as she reflected on balancing family life with a career in Hollywood more than a decade after the couple separated, the actress, 54, said their three children are now old enough to spend extended periods with their father, allowing her greater flexibility to take on work commitments while maintaining what she described as a strong co-parenting relationship.
Jennifer, best known for starring in Alias, 13 Going on 30, Juno and Dallas Buyers Club, made the comments during an interview with Entertainment Weekly while discussing the demands of raising a family alongside her acting career.
She and Ben were married from 2005 until their separation in 2015, with their divorce finalised in 2018. The former couple share Violet, 20, Fin, 17, and Samuel, 14, and have continued to appear together publicly with their children since their split.
Ben, meanwhile, has remained in the headlines following the end of his marriage to Jennifer Lopez in 2024, with both actors repeatedly speaking positively about their blended families.
Jennifer is currently promoting The Five-Star Weekend, while Ben continues to balance acting, directing and producing following projects including Air, The Accountant franchise and his long-running partnership with Artists Equity.
Jennifer said: “But my kids are a little bigger. Their dad has become this incredible co-parent.”
She added: “When (my kids) were younger, I wouldn’t have done a couple of weeks away without taking them with me.
“Now they’re in high school. You can’t really do that anymore.
“But they can stay with their dad. He’s wonderful. He takes care of them. He’s a great partner in that way. And that’s very freeing.”
Jennifer made the remarks while discussing “the minutiae of raising a family and working”, telling Entertainment Weekly motherhood inevitably became the priority during the years when her children were younger.
She said she “absolutely” became absorbed in raising her family, but explained that the children’s increasing independence has changed the way she approaches work.
The comments add to a series of public tributes Jennifer has paid to Ben since their divorce.
The pair have frequently been photographed attending family occasions together and have continued to spend time with their children during holidays and milestone celebrations.
On Father’s Day this year, Jennifer shared previously unseen photographs of Ben with their children alongside a tribute to her late father, William Garner.
She wrote: “My sisters and I loved to spoil our dad; he never wanted for fresh baked cookies or a bowl of ice cream.
“I see the way my kids dote on their dad and I’m happy for them. To love and be loved by a great dad is a gift.
“Happy Father’s Day to all of the dads and to the kids of dads, too.”
Ben also recently spoke warmly about Jennifer Lopez and her family following the end of their marriage. The actor was married to Jennifer from 2022 until 2024 and has maintained a positive relationship with her children, twins Emme and Max Muñiz, 18, who she shares with former husband Marc Anthony.
Speaking to Entertainment Tonight, Ben said: “For the record, Jennifer Lopez is spectacular, great to my kids, (and has a) great ongoing relationship with them.
“I love her kids. They’re wonderful. She’s (an) enormously important, tremendous person with a lot of integrity, who I adore and am grateful to.”
Jennifer was also seen attending an Ariana Grande concert in Los Angeles with Fin and one of her twins, reflecting the continued relationship between the families after the couple’s divorce.
Jennifer and Ben have remained among Hollywood’s most high-profile co-parenting former couples, with both continuing to speak publicly about supporting their children while pursuing their respective careers in film and television.
Jennifer Garner hails Ben Affleck as an ‘incredible co-parent’
