Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck’s relationship has featured more twists and turns than an ambitious forkful of spaghetti. They were on, they were off, two decades past, they were on, they were married, then they were off again.

Their divorce, on the other hand, has been fairly straightforward. In fact, they have just reached a settlement, less than five months after Lopez filed, and the divorce is set to be finalised in February.

The A-list couple first dated between 2002 and 2004 after meeting on the set of the film Gigli. They fell in love, got engaged and quickly became one of the most sought-after couples in Hollywood. Sadly, their whirlwind romance was cut short a few months before their wedding was due to take place and was unable to survive the unrelenting media attention.

20 years later, history did what history does. When Lopez and Affleck rekindled in 2021, fans were hoping they would finally get the happy ending they longed for all those years ago. They got married in 2022 with two lavish ceremonies and restored their status as one of Hollywood’s most famous couples – and so the unrelenting media attention followed.

By the time 2023 rolled around, cracks were beginning to show, Affleck became known for his ‘resting divorce face’ at red carpet events, they were often pictured bickering in their car, and it seemed like the scale of their collective fame was taking its toll once again.

The breakdown of their marriage, then, became one of the biggest pop culture stories of 2024. In fact, when Lopez co-hosted the Met Gala in May without a plus one it sparked a four-month media circus that saw Lopez and Affleck’s every move dissected online, their real estate listings published in tabloid magazines and the paparazzi zooming in on their phone backgrounds while they were driving to check if they were in contact.

By 20 August, on what would have been the second anniversary of their lavish wedding in Georgia, Lopez filed for divorce. Less than five months later, they have reached an amicable settlement. They did not have a pre-nuptial agreement, Lopez has an estimated net worth of $150 million and Affleck is reportedly worth $55 million, so it had the potential to become very complicated – and very messy.

However, Bennifer has surprised us all. They have both agreed to walk away with whatever they individually acquired during their marriage. For Affleck, this means the revenue from his films, Air, Unstoppable, The Instigators, The Accountant 2 and Small Things Like These, and for Lopez it includes whatever she earned on Atlas, This Is Me… Now, The Mother, Shotgun Wedding and Marry Me.

They have also reached an agreement on the $61 million Beverly Hills mansion they bought together in 2023, but the terms have been kept confidential. The house, otherwise known as a 38,000 square foot estate featuring a gym complex, basketball courts (plural), a ‘sports lounge’ and a bar, is currently on the market for $68 million. It is yet to be sold.

Since they do not share any children – Lopez has twins with her ex-husband Marc Anthony and Affleck has three children with his ex-wife Jennifer Garner – neither will pay spousal support to the other.

Lopez is also dropping ‘Affleck’ from her surname, but most people wouldn’t even know she took it in the first place.

All things considered, it sounds like they have reached a swift, fair and relatively painless settlement. Their lack of prenup would typically mean they divide everything they acquired during their marriage equally, but celebrity divorce lawyer Laura Wesser has reportedly worked her magic and essentially created a post-nup.

It suggests that a) neither of them needs to take the other’s money and b) they are not on hostile terms and have no desire to spend arduous time in court. The divorce will be finalised on 20 February, exactly six months after Lopez first filed, and just shy of a year since the date she listed for their separation.

Far from the nightmare divorce battle a lot of people had expected or the one certain corners of the press had been hoping for, 2025 looks set to be a lot less Bennifer-focused. The twice-former couple are clearly hoping to leave the whole saga in the past. Unlike Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, who are still legally married more than eight years after Jolie filed for divorce in 2016, this episode has been tidied up quite quickly.

It proves that Affleck and Lopez are hoping to join the ‘conscious uncoupling’ club, pathed by the likes of Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin and Demi Moore and Bruce Willis, and to remain on as amicable terms as possible. In November, Affleck publicly praised Lopez’s performance in Unstoppable, which she starred in and he produced, and when Lopez gave an interview with Nikki Glaser for Interview magazine about her ‘turbulent summer’, she refrained from going into any detail.

If the way they have been navigating their divorce behind closed doors is half as cordial as it has been in public, they look set for a much quieter year.