Jennifer Garner & Ben Affleck went out to dinner without the kids, got papped

Jennifer Garner & Seraphina Affleck Grab Lunch In Santa Monica
These are photos of Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner out recently separately. However these two were photographed out at dinner together for about an hour and a half to two hours (reports vary) on Thursday night. They went to a restaurant in Santa Monica, arriving in the same car and leaving in the same car. None of our agencies had these photos but you can see them on E! and US Weekly’s sites. Eyewitnesses (the paparazzi probably) say that Ben looked like he had a few drinks, which seems typical.

“Ben and Jen arrived around 8 and left just before 10,” an eyewitness tells Us. “Jen came out and walked to the car. Ben was behind her [and] he looked like he might have had a few drinks. … Jen seemed content, she didn’t look upset and didn’t say anything.”

“Jen mentioned that the divorce was going through very soon, and then a few weeks ago, things changed,” a source close to Garner told Us in July. “It does not seem to be moving in that direction.”

The pair dined at Sam’s by the Beach without their three children — Violet, 10, Seraphina, 7 and Samuel, 4 — and appeared relaxed with one another.

The exes, both 44, announced their split after 10 years of marriage last June, but neither has taken action to formally file for divorce. Earlier this year, a source told Us that their relationship had taken a turn for the better.

“Jen seems to still be in love with Ben but doesn’t allow her mind to go there,” the source continued. “She just focuses on the kids.”

The pair continue to live together in their $17.5 million, five-bedroom mansion, though they sleep in separate bedrooms.

[From US Magazine]

So it’s been about a year and a half and these two weathered a cheating scandal that seems mild compared to what we’ve seen from other high profile celebrities. They’re still coparenting, neither has had another romance that they’ve gone public with, and they haven’t filed for divorce. We heard that they would file in the spring but that didn’t happen. Are they just two people who take the path of least resistance? Is a divorce still in the works? I do think this outing was meant as a message that they’re still together in some capacity. It seems like more of a coincidence that they were caught out on a date in the midst of the Brangelina split.

This is the outfit Garner had on that night, so she didn’t change into something special.
Jennifer Garner & Seraphina Affleck Grab Lunch In Santa Monica

Ben Afleck Attends Church With His Children In Pacific Palisades

Jennifer Garner Out For Lunch In Pacific Palisades

Jennifer Garner is shown on 9/22, 9/23 and 9/24/16. Ben Affleck is shown on 9/4. Credit: Fameflynet

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69 Responses to “Jennifer Garner & Ben Affleck went out to dinner without the kids, got papped”

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  1. Meandyou says:

    She will never divorce him and he’s working to make sure she doesn’t by being nice and co-operative yet without giving up any of the things he loves, booze, gambling and probably women. I bet there are women, they’re just unimportant side pieces.

    • Luca76 says:

      Sadly you seemed to hit the nail on the head.

    • Hannah says:

      He got what he wanted and I’ve lost any respect for her.

      • cherrypie says:

        Exactly. As much as Im sad about the Brangelina split I have much more respect for Angelina. She made up her mind and she did what she had to do immediatley. JGarner’s behaviour is a bit pathetic in this particular situation.

    • A says:

      There’s no evidence that he’s dating other women, or still gambling. He hasn’t been seen randomly at casinos since before the divorce announcement (just one Vegas appearance for an Eastern Congo Initiative fundraiser).

  2. detritus says:

    Why does she dress like Amy Farah Fowler? staaaaahp.
    also burn all your shoes in a fire

    • LB says:

      I sometimes think if I was as rich as her, I’d dress much better. But nah I’d probably still be walking around in sweats.

      I’m with you on the shoes though. Why do celebrities have such terrible shoes? T swift is another one with horrible shoes.

    • detritus says:

      She has enough money she could literally have any shoe she wanted custom fit to her feet. There is no need for this orthopaedic looking nonsense.

      Those shoes just make me really mad.

      The hanging out going shopping outfit? I’d wear that, hopefully in a better fitting cut though. Can’t hate on being comfy.

      The date night look. Would you let a friend go on a date wearing that? Unless it’s fug on purpose? just thinking, maybe she is a mastermind and is shutting down any sexy time thoughts Batfleck might have. That outfit is pretty much negative sex appeal. And Jen is hot.

      • JLo says:

        I don’t know what to believe…is she a really poor dresser or is this part of her “normal mom” schtick? Maybe it’s where I live, but I don’t know any moms her age that dress so terribly and make suck little effort.

  3. Mrs. Welen-Melon says:

    She shops Clearance at Nordstrom Rack, just like us!

    • susanne says:

      I shop at goodwill, and if I buy a pair of jeans that fit me like that, back they go!!!
      x1000 on the shoes. It’s almost as if frumpy is the look she’s going for.

      • Snowflake says:

        I know right! She has a great body, you can see it when she’s in her workout clothes. If I had her body, I would wear clothes that show it off. Not in a bimbo way, but the stuff she wears makes her look so frumpy. Why, Jennifer, why?

  4. Squiggisbig says:

    Oh wow…what a crazy coincidence that the paps would be there!

    I truly hope they didn’t tell their kids they were getting divorced just to continue this whole dance. The cynical side of me really thinks that Bennifer 2.0 are just too thirsty to give up the chance to be one of the last standing A-list-ish ( Ish because JG’s career is nowhere near Angelina’s) couples.

    • Sunny says:

      They have been spotted together many times in the last year, long before Brangelina went kaboom. Plus she was followed all day in those same clothes, what’s so surprising that they caught her later having dinner with her co-parent? They probably spent the night discussing their kids school reports and extra curricular activities. She may not be as big a star but she is a better mother for protecting her kids from an acrimonious public divorce and never trying to rip their father from their lives.

  5. lucy2 says:

    I’ll be surprised if they get back together as a couple, but it seems like they’re at least trying to stay friends and work together for their kids.

  6. LannisterForever says:

    I really loved them together and a part of me still wish they’ll get back together. I need a Hollywood couple to root for now that my OTP Brangelina is over….

  7. QQ says:

    Hahahah This Outfit and “Shoe Condition highligjting shoe” caaaaackles.. also sely .. did they feel devoid of attention? Or what was the point of this pap walk ocassion?

  8. Daphne says:

    Desperate times calls for desperate measures.Which woman is she trying to fend off with this ploy.He is not into you get that into your head Jennifer.

    • Sunny says:

      If you look at how she dressed for thir “date” i.e. Parenting meeting, she is not into him either. But they clearly love each other and their children enough to rebuild the friendship and work on perfecting the co-parenting before they pull any official plug. Not every couple rips each other to shreds the second they are done.

      • Daphne says:

        Really so what is stopping her from dating,what is stopping her from filing?For someone who is not over him she seems very invested in him not just for the sake of the kids.We know Jennifer has never been keen on dressing up anyway.And it will look foolish for her to dress to dinnerfor a man who has never acknowledged wanting to get back with her.Methinks she is lying about her true intentions.Just get divorce then moving on shall be easier.This thing she is doing is a pure waste of time,eventually he will move on and she will be left hanging on to nothing.

      • A says:

        They live together so don’t need to go out for a meal to discuss parenting.

    • Diane says:

      Do they live together tho? I question he lives there. Maybe stays there when she is away, but …

      • jas says:

        I don’t know if they still live together but I find it even more strange that they still share vehicles. I am happily married and don’t share vehicles with my spose. How hard is it to drive your own damn car.

      • A says:

        Yes, according to People and Us Weekly, and photo agencies like x17, Ben still lives at the house.

      • Diane says:

        A, they often refer back to old quotes to state that though. I don’t recall seeing a current quote. There was article early this year that said she couldn’t handle him there so he moved out pretty soon. I never see that referenced but I think it was people or us mag. It sounds so much better to keep alluding to his living there.

  9. Astrid says:

    This endless story must be really confusing for the kids. Just divorce already, peel the band aid off, and continue with your separate lives while loving your kids.

  10. JoJo says:

    I don’t think this was a coincidence at all. Another article said they go there all the time, so how were they papped just this one time. Because they wanted to be. No surprises here. Jen is taking him back … yet again.

  11. Jenfan says:

    Not sure what is going on here. Seems like they might actually have been caught having dinner together here. But given they had a driver (based on pics on other sites) either they were expecting the paps or expected to drink. Is the hungry cat a celeb place where paps hang out? According to the E news article, it’s no big deal and they have dinner there “often” – well if that were actually true, I would have expected them to have gotten papped there before.
    A whole last week Jen and Ben were photographed every day together (even before the brangelina split). The dinner alone just capped off the week. As a side note – she appeared to be covering her whole left hand with her sweater as she left the restaurant. Interestingly, Ben has not been photographed with Jen or kids since (she has been every day). Did he go back to London?

    I think time will tell. There does not seem to be a divorce filing coming any time soon. Maybe they are comfortable with the path to least resistance. This way they don’t have to actually split up property or workout custody. Though I would think after a year plus, this was already worked out.

  12. Lalu says:

    I am poor and I don’t even have good taste and I dress so much better than she does. I don’t care that much about what I wear but I wouldn’t be caught dead in that shirt that they are saying she wore to dinner.
    These two look like they have just given up. They are young. I don’t get it.

  13. Joni says:

    Damage control. There were a lot of negative stories/sightings lately, either about them arguing or about her crying. If they really are working on their marriage, then its clearly very rocky.

  14. JoJo says:

    There’s a good blog that came out offer Jennifer’s VF interview, which nicely sums up Jennifer’s approach to their marriage, at least IMO. I can’t get the link to post here, but it’s at ChumpLady, called, “Jennifer Garner’s Sh** Sandwich”.

    I fully agree with this blogger’s take. Jennifer is still – always has been and seems like she always will be – stuck in the, “I’m stil special” and “Pick me” dynamic with Ben. She wants to be “the one” who stuck it out, and she’ll go the last mile. Although others viewed her VF piece as a swan song to their marriage, I never did, and there were definitely a few nuggets in there that made it clear she wasn’t done, like, “It’s not Ben’s job to make me happy.” Translation: A lot of this must be my fault too, so I’m going to work on myself to be a better wife. Co-dependency at its best.

    • Kate says:

      JoJo and Daphne need therapy, JoJo to stop being in denial that she secretly ships Ben and Jen, and Daphne needs to move on from Ben and Jlo cuz that ship has sailed. Daphne is English your second or third language?

      • JoJo says:

        Are you ok? I don’t need to secretly ship anything. I think these two are a classic case of co-dependency. Let’s face it – the nanny was just the latest problem. The blinds and rumors of serious trouble in paradise – from addiction to infidelity – go back nearly a decade. And yet Jen continues to stay – same old same old. So while I’m not a shipper (but who cares if I was), I’m just saying what I think, which is that Jen doesn’t want to pull the plug, and I personally don’t think she ever will.

  15. Daphne says:

    Madness is doing the something over and over and expecting different results.I am referring to Jennifer here.

  16. Kate says:

    Oh you guys are forgetting that Ben is about to go on a press tour for the Accountant, that’s all this is PR so that he can say “we’re great friends” . That movie btw looks like crap, and will probably be a box office and critical failure, something that Ben hasn’t had to deal with in awhile. That’s what’s important to Ben , work, not her or his kids, that’s why he has no problem not seeing them for months at a time but now showing up to be papped spending time with the kids and with her, perfect timing to promote his stupid movie. I’m surprised none of you see this for what it really is an opportunity for some good press, remember people this is the guy that banged his kids nanny.

    • J says:

      I agree definitely pre-the accountant pr. But wouldn’t the pr be better (and more real) if he did a lot of strolls with his kids being a great single dad. Unless they are planning to publically re-connect, why would he want pr of him and Jen on a casual date? (And why would she be complicit in it?), it just makes it harder for him to be public in another relationship.

      Ben has been working a ton lately and will have a lot of press tours (and maybe award season work) – between the accountant and live by night. Plus all his work on justice league, solo batman movie etc. again why would he want to perpetuate a quasi together image if he wants to publically move on – just makes it harder!

    • A says:

      That’s ridiculous – he’s been flying back and forth constantly to visit his kids, and they’ve visited him too. Whatever his faults, he’s not an absentee dad.

  17. Nancy says:

    So is Santa Monica that cold, Ben all cozied up in his fur collared jacket…lol. Jennifer probably thought those pesty old paps would leave her alone now that the king and queen have been dethroned. No such luck Jen.

  18. HK9 says:

    Jenifer Garner has a fantastic shape, but why she insists on dressing like that I’ll never know.

  19. Liza says:

    I can’t say I’d bother to change clothes for Ben Affleck, either…just saying…:)

  20. Ana says:

    I think this is more for Ben. The movie The Accountant is coming soon. This is a good PR move for him. He is using the good co parenting angle.

    BTW, does he have a divorce lawyer at all? I believe he is the one who doesn’t want a divorce. The old arrangement works best for him except it has gotten messy with the nanny.

    I don’t know why Jen still clings to this family image. I remember when Ben got booted out from the casino for card counting, he started yelling at Jennifer outside and they started fighting. What a dbag! A Twitter even saw them going at it too and commented how an embarrassment he was for his family. Jen has taken a lot from this guy and at this point I believe this guy really doesn’t want a divorce. Didn’t he mention this in one of his older interviews?

  21. Tris says:

    She wanted to show off her new Value Village find – “I can wear a size 12, right? I mean, it’s only $4.50!! I can pair it with my elderly mother’s skirt, aaaaannnnd…these sandals – they are sooooo comfy!”
    Who wouldn’t call the paps after a glam session like that?

  22. Diane says:

    Gossip Cop says Garner camp confirms they are not reconciling FWIW.

    • Ana says:

      Just read Gossip Cop…the Garner camp confirmed it. She wants it (the divorce) not sure about him.

      • JoJo says:

        It would be good if we could all believe Gossip Cop, but Gossip Cop denied last May that Ben and Jen were splitting up, right before they split up! :/ That said, they did admit by mid-June that it was strange that neither camp was talking all of a sudden. I just view GC as pushing out whatever narrative celebs and their reps want out there – whether it’s true or not.

      • minx says:

        I’ll believe it when I see it (a divorce). I think she thinks it makes her sound strong and in control to say they aren’t reconciling, but then the months drag on and on. If he made some half-baked promises to be good I think she would stay married to him forever.

  23. jo says:

    my x and i dine all the time together ALONE. that is the time when we discuss our son and what is going on. we get along, we do things as a family multiple times a week and we still vacation together because we are a family. not every divorce is evil! i think the media (and maybe jen too) are making all of this out to be a bigger deal than it is.

  24. Ana says:

    Did Jennifer get a breast augmentation? Getting bigger everyday!

  25. Jenfan says:

    Zimbio has pics of Ben and Jen out this morning to “breakfast” again. No kids in the photos. It looks like the same street they were papped on last week. My guess is that is probably where Sam’s pre school is. For the last week (since Ben got back from London) they seem to be in the routine of probably dropping their girls off at school, and then probably have time to kill before Sam’s pre-school starts, hence all the “breakfast and coffee” shots.
    Jo (above) says this normal for a friendly divorced couple. I find this hard to believe – but I’m not in it. Good luck to them !

    • Ana says:

      Jennifer looks very pretty on those pictures. I think Ben had a weekend off. 🙂

      • Ana says:

        I was in Vegas over the weekend and I was almost expecting to see BA over there. LOL!!!! You know, it is weekend… for him.

    • JoJo says:

      Here is a woman who devoted an entire Vanity Fair article to talking about “the love of her life.” It’s not even conceivable to think you could spend this much time with the love of your life merely as a co-parent. You need a lot of emotional distance and time to get past that. It doesn’t mean they have to be uncivil to each other or have a nasty split or even that they can’t see each other occasionally, but to say he’s the love of her life and for her to spend this much time with him. There’s just no need for it – I just don’t buy it that it’s for the kids, and I don’t buy that she’s moving on.

      • J says:

        @jojo I tend to agree – I just think it would be too painful. Why is Ben hanging with her if he is the one that desperately wanted out. It really is a lot of hanging around together. There are more zimbio photos getting coffee with Sam and maybe a new nanny?

        Another good question – where did Ben go all weekend? Laying low after Thursday night’s papped date or “off” as another poster indicated above.

        Fun to watch- I am really curious how this relationship will play out in the end. Or will we never know – will they continue to be separated? No other public relationship and no divorce filing – all the while hanging together?

      • Kate says:

        JoJo you are sad, you are so invested in them it’s ridiculous! You know details about them that you would only know if you were trolling for that information in various gossip sites and social media, I don’t know half the stuff you bring up, to me this is pure entertainment, I comment because it’s fun, you comment as if your life depended on it, are you having a relationship with Ben in “real life”?

      • JoJo says:

        @Kate – I’m not even sure why I’m responding to you because your comment is ridiculous. Nothing I have said is anything that’s obscure or hard to find. It’s simply from reading about them in the tabloids for years. and I have my opinions on it. And I’ve always liked analyzing people’s relationships – it’s kind of fun. I think you should probably just worry about yourself and your own comments though. You certainly don’t sound like you’re having “fun” – you sound pretty venomous.

  26. Moose says:

    All PR, just like at least 95% of the time they’ve been together. They’ll beat us over the head with this happy co-parenting BS until he can get his drinking and embarrassing public appearances under control. He’s done a good job of keeping his side pieces under wraps lately, it’s really just the boozing now. Once he’s fit for public consumption, they’ll publicly reconcile. She gets more pathetic with every passing year and was never going anywhere. This marriage is all she has, it IS her career. I’m surprised that they haven’t started changing their tune and letting the reconciliation rumors go wild. Why she bothers with Gossip Cop, etc is a true mystery. But then, everything is a charade with her. Fake, fake, fake, just like the upper lip, the boobs and the southern accent she occasionally puts on when it’s beneficial.

  27. Justwas says:

    I am sorry as frumpy as she sometimes looks in pics – he always looks just dreadful and at times homeless. FWIW I saw her once in a local farmers markets IRL and she looked lovely and has a great smile