Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck’s surprise wedding at A Little White Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas last weekend – as announced by Ms. Lopez – has been stirring the internet. And maybe it set a precedent for future weddings (the copycat wedding dresses are already in production).
Perhaps the most notable of all the emerging details was that Ms. Lopez announced that she was changing her name to Jennifer Lynn Affleck. The Styles team discussed this, the location, and other snacks the newlyweds distributed via social media.
Vanessa Friedman: I can appreciate the impetus behind Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck’s wedding as I renewed my vows in Vegas a while back. It’s like a bubble in time when you’re on a conveyor belt of weddings, and everyone before and after you is just happy. (When my husband and I renewed our vows, I made my bouquet from the flowers on the centerpiece of a hotel table and handed it to the bride after me.) That said, there was something very traditional about Jennifer and Ben’s wedding, and utterly unique, because of who they are: after three marriages, J. Lo became Mrs. Affleck; because she announced the wedding through her newsletter to her fans; because she was wearing two dresses.
Jacob Bernstein: Yes, there was a kind of duality in it. On the one hand, the mundane description she gives of being on par with those three or four other couples; and, on the other hand, the speed at which she makes it this thing to be downloaded and consumed on her website – after you sign up for the newsletter.
Stella Bugbee: Maybe you’re a little too cynical, Jacob. I understand why the fact that it looked ready to be released might raise questions like, “Is this authentic?” But that seems almost beside the point. She wanted control, and she got it.
Sandra Garcia: Sending blurry night-on-the-town photos on Instagram is very “Hollywood,” but actively pretending it isn’t.
VF It seems to me to be an essential part of how celebrities are taking control of their private lives, something both Rihanna and Beyoncé have masterfully done. They essentially set the tone for how this is all handled, with staged natural shots for fans, allowing them to see just enough to keep the interest going, but not so much that it could be compromising or lead to oversaturation. (which has probably been a problem for Jennifer Lopez in the past). And when it comes to weddings, this harks back to Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt’s wedding, when only one or two tasteful black and whites were handed out to the world, rather than a paid Hello! magazine photo shoot.
JB Yes and no. I think Beyoncé and Rihanna (as well as Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston) have made it very clear how little they need to deal with not only the paparazzi, but the general marketing of their private lives, and I think that’s part of a function of the fact that for them, what is personal is that they throw up is their art, while for Lopez, her art is really what I would call “the art of being J. Lo.” She’s a great entertainer on stage, she’s great in ‘Hustlers’, but she’s great at it because what she is is J.Lo.
SB Being J.Lo is no small feat.
SG I’ve seen her Super Bowl documentary and she complains that she’s tired of celebrities, but it’s not her hits or her movies that keep her relevant.
JB All the way. She hasn’t made an album like Beyoncé’s “Lemonade” or Madonna’s “Ray of Light”. She cannot evoke the sheer exuberance of Janet Jackson. And Brad Pitt, in addition to being an Oscar-winning actor of considerable reach, has become a film producer responsible for some of the best films of the past decade. A friend of mine from the House of Xtravaganza says that J. Lo is “the best person in the world to get out of the car”.
VF OK: So let’s go with her as her, or versions of herself. What is she in the wedding photos? An old-fashioned romantic? Taking her husband’s name and wearing white (twice)? What does it mean that she changes her last name with her fourth husband? That this is the real one?
SB I think it is one of the most public acts of submission that a person can perform. But that’s especially true for celebrity wives who earn their money from their name recognition. It certainly complicates the conversation about power in heterosexual marriages when you have two famous people and one takes the other’s name. Why didn’t he become Ben Lopez? What would that have done to his ego? We can never know what conversations will be about those picks, but she’s one of the high-profile female celebrities to do it recently.
SG Yes, for example, both Beyoncé and Kim Kardashian eventually took their husband’s last name, but that wasn’t until later in marriage and after children. J. Lo has her long history with Ben dating back to 20 years.
SB Right. That history must certainly have played a role in her choice this time.
SG The big question I have is, will she follow Jennifer Affleck to a marquee? As one of Hollywood’s most compensated Latinas who doesn’t speak much Spanish, her name did a lot to signal her background to the public.
VF I wonder if it isn’t a covert reaction to the rumor mill that seems to surround and often tarnish celebrity marriages. Such as: Yes, this is real; I am committed enough to change my name. And I wonder what effect it might have on others. Because historically, the name change was about becoming a man’s property, and then refusing to change your name became a declaration of independence and equality. And now it’s a choice to choose your own adventure.
SG Has taking a partner’s last name become a power move? There is no doubt that Jennifer is independent and a star in her own right. When such powerful women take the name of their husbands—sometimes of men equally powerful—does that turn the symbolism into an even greater statement of confidence?
JB I mean, isn’t this wedding the ultimate “Jenny From the Block” moment?
SB Means what?
JB Oh, I mean, she’s known for having one of the best collections of rocks since Elizabeth Taylor. She’s known for creating spectacle, making an entrance — perhaps in a kaftan-esque Versace dress with a plunging neckline. But this time she does no such thing.
SG That’s it right him! Look guys, I’m still off the block. J. Lo hasn’t been around for decades, and I don’t need her either. Why can’t she be Hollywood J. Lo? Give us glamour, sparkle, a show!
VF In this way she is both ambitious – she looks great and (I say it again) gets two dresses, including a very elaborate Zuhair Murad number and one that harks back to a movie wardrobe – and recognizable, which is the ultimate consumer package .
JB Also the perfect ending to so many J. Lo movies.