Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck have been back in the headlines lately, but do you remember how they originally became one of Hollywood's most iconic golden couples? Once upon a time, it all started with a critically lambasted little love story by the name of Gigli...

Back in the early 2000s, J.Lo was one of the hottest budding multi-hyphenates of the entertainment industry. In January 2001, she simultaneously released her eponymous sophomore album J.Lo and the now-classic romantic comedy The Wedding Planner, co-starring Matthew McConaughey. The massive success of both projects led her to become the first leading lady to have both a No. 1 film and album at the very same time.

Meanwhile, Affleck had spent half a decade as one of Hollywood's most bankable leading men, starring in a string of massive hits including Good Will Hunting, Shakespeare in Love, Armageddon and Pearl Harbor.

By the fall of 2001, both superstars had signed on to star in Gigli. The comedy — if you can call it that — saw Affleck portray low-level mobster Larry Gigli, with Lopez playing his love interest. The two met on set, sparks flew and thus... Bennifer was born.

For more than two years, the couple reigned supreme in Hollywood. To massive success, Lopez dedicated her 2002 follow-up album, This is Me... Then, to her newfound love. In between starring roles in films like The Sum of All Fears and Daredevil, Affleck even co-starred with J.Lo in the music video for her iconic hit "Jenny From the Block." By the end of 2002, they were engaged and inescapable in the pages of basically every single tabloid.

Then, in August 2003, Gigli finally hit theaters across the country at the height of Bennifer mania... and promptly bombed. Hard.

The movie was universally panned and has since gone down in history as one of the worst films ever made.The following month, the golden couple's planned September wedding was pushed back due to "excessive media coverage." Four months later, they called off their engagement and broke up.

Of course, Lopez went on to marry Marc Anthony and later date Alex Rodriguez, while Affleck was married to Jennifer Garner from 2005 to 2018. However now that both are single, things have come full circle and it appears Bennifer 2.0 could be back on. At least that's one silver lining to the existence of Gigli?

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