For Jennifer Lopez, 2024 was a complicated year, 12 months filled with tension as her marriage to fellow actor Ben Affleck fell apart. But 2025 is starting a little bit better as the 55-year-old strives to pick up the pieces.
For one, Lopez and Affleck settled their divorce earlier this month, and she is closing in on purchasing a $20 million home in the Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles — coincidentally (or not), the same neighborhood in which Affleck has resided for the past nine months. But professionally, Lopez is starting to reap further rewards of a life lived in the spotlight, with her most recent projects drawing widespread attention in the opening weeks of the new year.
Lopez credits Bill Condon for helping her branch out
In addition to her role as Judy Robles in the Affleck-produced sports biopic “Unstoppable“, Lopez is starring in “Kiss of the Spider Woman“, the first movie musical of her long career. This adaptation of Manuel Puig‘s 1976 novel that later became an award-winning Broadway musical was screened at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah on Sunday — and Lopez was moved to tears when she spoke about working with director Bill Condon.
“I’ve been waiting for this moment my whole life,” Lopez said following the screening. “The reason I even wanted to be in this business is because my mom would sit me in front of the TV and ‘West Side Story‘ would come on once a year. I remember I was mesmerized and was like, ‘That’s what I want to do.’ That was always my goal.
“This is the first time I actually got to do it. This man made my dream come true!”
Lopez has found success as a musical artist, with her resume boasting hit tracks like “Let’s Get Loud” and “Jenny from the Block“, and her starring role in the 1997 “Selena” biopic helped transform her into a bankable Hollywood leading woman. But “Kiss of the Spider Woman” marks a new chapter in Lopez’s career amidst rumors linking her to actor Kevin Costner as her first romance post-Affleck. Lopez clearly feels that the sky is the limit for her as she turns the page on her tumultuous two-year marriage.