Jennifer Lopez Explains How Taking Ben Affleck's Last Name Is a "Power Move"
Despite what the critics say.
The world may forever know her as Jennifer Lopez, but legally, she’s Jennifer Affleck. The singer-slash-actor married Ben Affleck this summer and decided to legally change her name. As a result, she’s received a lot of criticism; The New York Times even published an op-ed on how this is not a feminist move. However, Lopez, couldn’t disagree more.
“What? Really?” she asked Vogue during her interview for her latest cover story, surprised about the NYT‘s stance. “People are still going to call me Jennifer Lopez. But my legal name will be Mrs. Affleck because we’re joined together.”
Lopez went on to explain how keeping this specific tradition is important to her. “We’re husband and wife. I’m proud of that. I don’t think that’s a problem.”
When asked if she would ever consider having her husband take her last name, Lopez was strongly against it. “No! It’s not traditional,” she said. “It doesn’t have any romance to it.”
She then elaborated on how changing her surname is actually empowering despite what others may believe. “It feels like it’s a power move, you know what I mean? I’m very much in control of my own life and destiny and feel empowered as a woman and as a person,” she explained. “I can understand that people have their feelings about it, and that’s okay, too. But if you want to know how I feel about it, I just feel like it’s romantic. It still carries tradition and romance to me, and maybe I’m just that kind of girl.”
After all, when J.Lo was first got engaged to the actor back in the early aughts, she said she would take his last name. Clearly, she stuck to her word.
