Ben Affleck: “The biggest regret of my life is my divorce from Jennifer Garner”

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• Ben Affleck, an alcoholic in rehabilitation in his real life and in fiction
• Ben Affleck admits he has fallen back on alcohol
• Ben Affleck: "Being an alcoholic is part of my life"

Ben Affleck said in an interview with The New York Times that his divorce from Jennifer Garner is "the greatest regret of his life." "Shame is really toxic. There is no positive byproduct of shame. It's just a toxic and horrible feeling of low self-esteem and self-deprecation." And he adds: "I drank relatively normally for a long time. What happened was that I started drinking more and more when my marriage was falling apart. This was in 2015-16 and, of course, created more marital problems." The actor and director married Jennifer Garner in 2005 and divorced in 2015. In 2018, Affleck entered a detoxification clinic and subsequently made public that he was already completely rehabilitated from his alcohol addiction although in recent months he has suffered relapses.

Affleck also said that both he and his wife tried to keep their children away from the images that some media spread on the Internet in which Affleck was seen in compromised situations because of alcohol. Jennifer Garner has always been with Ben Affleck, despite his problems with alcohol and has been a key part in his recovery. Affleck and Garner are parents of three children: Violet, 14; Seraphina, 11; and Samuel, 7.

"It is not particularly healthy for me to become obsessed with failures and relapses and scourge for it," Affleck added in his interview with the Times . “Certainly, I have made mistakes. Certainly, I have done things that I regret. But you have to get up, learn from it, learn a little more and try to pull forward. "

Ben Affleck, with one of his daughters. GTRES

Already before these statements, the actor had made several references to his problems and the desire to overcome them: "Fighting any addiction is a difficult and lifelong struggle. That is why one is never really in treatment or out of it. It is a commitment full time. I am fighting for myself and my family, "he said.

"Fighting any addiction is a difficult struggle for life. Therefore, one is never really on or without treatment. It is a full-time commitment," said the Oscar-winning director of Argo through a statement posted on Instagram in 2018, when one of his therapies ended. "The support I have received from my family, colleagues and fans leaves me speechless. They have given me the strength and support to discuss my illness with others," Affleck said. The interpreter also wanted to show his gratitude to those people who have shared their experience with social media addiction because as he recalled: "It helps to know that you are not alone. I had to remind myself that if you have a problem, ask help is a sign of courage and not of weakness or failure. "

Affleck's personal difficulties coincided with the time when the actor filmed and premiered Batman v Superman , the film in which he first embodied the Dark Knight in the cinema. The film was beaten by critics and Affleck became a meme.

Precisely, in his new film, The Way Back , the character of Affleck fights against alcoholism and tries to reconcile with his wife. "It was really important, without being rude or false, that he made peace, that he took responsibility for the pain he and only he had caused," Affleck reflected on scenes from which the film's director, Gavin O ' Connor said he "collapsed emotionally."