Can Ben Affleck sort out his troubled life following split from Bond girl Ana de Armas?
FOR almost a year Bond beauty Ana de Armas kept troubled Hollywood heart-throb Ben Affleck on the straight and narrow.
The health conscious Cuban tamed her wild living boyfriend, turning him from a heavy drinking wreck into a happy home boy during the pandemic.
Now the 32-year-old actress, who will appear in the next 007 movie No Time to Die, is the latest in a long line of Ben’s gone girls.
Unlike in many previous relationships, though, Ben’s erratic behaviour does not appear to have been the reason behind the break-up.
Instead it is his desire to be a good father to his three children with ex-wife Jennifer Garner.
While Ana wanted to continue globe-trotting, Ben needed to stay in Los Angeles so he could be close to his kids.
Previously 48-year-old Ben’s engagement to Jennifer Lopez ended following rumours that he bedded a stripper. Gwyneth Paltrow split with him because he was ‘complicated’ and booze tore apart his marriage to Garner.
Booze battles
Oscar winner Ben, whose own father battled alcoholism, has been to rehab three times and admitted to having an addictive personality.
Shortly before meeting Ana on the set of the movie Deep Water in November 2019, the Batman actor was spotted struggling to walk properly on leaving a Halloween party.
And in 2018 Ben spent days living it up with Playboy model Shauna Sexton who was half his age.
“Ben was always very happy when Ana was around. She likes to stay healthy and inspired Ben to keep staying healthy too. It was very complicated.”
Love split
Insiders say there were two complications which led to the couple’s ‘amicable’ parting of the ways.
One was Ben's desire to be in California as often as possible so that he can see his children, Violet, 15, Seraphina, 12, and Samuel, eight.
Ben was always very happy when Ana was around.
A friend told People magazine
The other is that Ben has apparently ruled out ever being a father again and Ana would like to be a mum one day.
As a result it was Ana who put an end to things, with a source saying: "She broke it off. Ana doesn't want to be Los Angeles based and Ben obviously has to since his kids live in Los Angeles."
Friends hope the couple might reconcile because they were so good for each other.
Troubled past
They certainly don’t want Ben to fall off the wagon like he has so often during a rollercoaster career.
“You’re trying to make yourself feel better with eating or drinking or sex or gambling or shopping or whatever. But that ends up making your life worse.”
Last love
Only when he grew close to Knives Out star Ana on set in Louisiana did Ben truly begin to clean up his act again.
In the whodunnit Deep Water he plays a wealthy man who allows his wife, portrayed by Ana, to stray.
Their real life romance was more traditional.
Shortly after finishing shooting Ben visited Cuba with Ana and they were often spotted laughing heartily during walks in LA.
Her importance became even more evident when Ben’s children met Ana at his home in May.
Later, the kids cheekily placed a cardboard cut-out of the actress on their dad’s front lawn so that paparazzi had something to snap instead of the love-birds.
But this week that life-sized image of Ana was dumped in the rubbish by someone working for Ben.
That moment symbolised the end to their year-long dalliance.
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Whether it also signals his return to careless adventures is yet to be seen.