EXCLUSIVE: Ben Affleck 'Convinced Brutal Rehab Confession Session About His Affairs' Has 'Killed Any Chance of Him Getting Back With Jennifer Garner'
Ben Affleck confessed all in a rehab therapy session with his ex-wife Jennifer Garner.
May 21 2025, Published 10:00 a.m. ET
Ben Affleck is still "bruised and haunted" by an intense two-hour therapy confessional with Jennifer Garner during one of his stints in rehab.
Sources tell RadarOnline.com he wept as he and his now-ex sat through a brutal two-hour 'confession session' during one if his last stints in rehab.
One insider says the actor sat "red-faced" as he opened up about his affairs to try and create a "clean slate" with Garner for the sake of their kids.
Brutal Memory
Affleck is said to be desperate to win back Garner as they co-parent their kids.
The source said: "It was one of the last chapters in Ben's rehab journey.
"He found the process really painful at the time, but he's still haunted with shame over it now. He hates he messed it up with Jennifer and secretly yearns to get her back."
Another insider added about the session that reduced Affleck and Garner to tears: "He and Jen both ended up in tears by the end of his first session where he opened up about his affair and relationships as it opened up a lot of wounds."
The confessional meeting took place during 52-year-old Affleck's time at The Canyons rehabilitation facility in Malibu in 2018.
But the raw details of the session have come back to haunt Affleck as Garner, also 52, is reportedly engaged to long-term boyfriend John Miller, 46.
Our source said: "Ben is devastated by the rumors Jen is getting engaged to John and thinks his affairs confession totally ruined his chances of getting her back."
Painful Session
The former couple have been snapped getting close since Affleck's divorce from Jennifer Lopez.
The session reportedly included discussion of Affleck's rumored affair with the family's former nanny, Christine Ouzounian, 36, who had been hired to care for their children – Violet, now 19, Seraphina, 16, and Samuel, 13 – shortly before she was dismissed in 2015.
That relationship, combined with Affleck's escalating drinking, played a huge role in the unraveling of the couple's decade-long marriage.
Affleck, who has struggled with alcohol addiction for more than two decades, had previously entered rehab in 2001 and again in 2017.
In 2018, he was said to be in "bad shape" – drinking heavily at home, not eating, and refusing to shower – before Garner staged an intervention and drove him to the Malibu facility with an addiction therapist in tow.
'Backfired' Fear
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"He and Jen went into that session to create a clean slate, especially for the kids," our source said, adding: "But he now fears his honesty has backfired and Jen will never take him back."
Since their divorce was finalized in October 2018, Affleck has dated Saturday Night Live producer Lindsay Shookus, 43, and model Shauna Sexton, 26.
He later rekindled his relationship with Jennifer Lopez in 2021, marrying her the following year.
But Lopez filed for divorce in August 2024, with the split finalized in January 2025.
Garner, who has kept a low public profile in recent years, has been dating businessman John Miller since 2018.
According to reports this week, she is now engaged, though neither has publicly confirmed the news.
Affleck has since resumed work in Hollywood and continues therapy, while maintaining a strong co-parenting relationship with Garner.
