{"id":52457,"date":"2026-09-01T16:35:45","date_gmt":"2026-09-01T20:35:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/?p=52457"},"modified":"2026-09-01T16:35:45","modified_gmt":"2026-09-01T20:35:45","slug":"jennifer-garner-says-she-panicked-over-finances-after-divorce-from-ben-affleck","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/2026\/09\/jennifer-garner-says-she-panicked-over-finances-after-divorce-from-ben-affleck.html","title":{"rendered":"Jennifer Garner Says She \u2018Panicked\u2019 Over Finances After Divorce From Ben Affleck"},"content":{"rendered":"
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s_bukley \/ Shutterstock.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Jennifer Garner\u2019s fame did not protect her from a fear familiar to many single parents: wondering whether she could support herself and her children.<\/p>\n

During an appearance on the \u201cAspire with Emma Grede\u201d podcast, the actress revealed that she \u201cpanicked\u201d after her marriage to Ben Affleck ended. After stepping back from her career to raise their three children, Garner suddenly felt pressure to rebuild her earning power while remaining present for her family.<\/p>\n

\u201cI panicked when I was first out of my marriage and realized I had taken such a step back in my work,\u201d Garner said.<\/p>\n

The \u201cAlias\u201d star also understood that Hollywood careers\u2014especially for women\u2014do not always become more secure or lucrative with age.<\/p>\n

\u201cSuddenly I realized I don\u2019t know how long I\u2019ll be able to work,\u201d she said. \u201cI was suddenly like, \u2018Wait a minute, I have to take care of myself, I have to take care of these kids. So what is it going to be?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Garner and Affleck married in 2005 after appearing together in \u201cDaredevil.\u201d They announced their separation in 2015 and later finalized their divorce.<\/p>\n

Returning to work came with difficult choices for Garner. She loved filming on location, but spending months away was no longer practical while raising her children in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t leave these kids for six months at a time,\u201d she explained. \u201cI would love to. I love going on location, but it\u2019s not this time in my career.\u201d<\/p>\n

Garner said she remains grateful that she once had the freedom to work less and devote more time to motherhood.<\/p>\n

\u201cI got to kind of have the best of both worlds, so I can\u2019t really look back and complain about any of it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Still, the divorce forced her to think differently about money. Garner said being famous does not automatically guarantee lasting financial security.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not like you can just unfamous yourself,\u201d she said. \u201cLife is expensive, and you still have to figure out how you\u2019re going to live.\u201d<\/p>\n

That realization pushed Garner to become more intentional about earning an income. Along with continuing her acting career, she became a co-founder of Once Upon a Farm, an organic children\u2019s food company.<\/p>\n

The actress also learned to release the expectation that she could perfectly balance her career and motherhood. Her advice to other working parents is to show themselves grace when life does not go according to plan.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no such thing as balance. There\u2019s no such thing as doing it right,\u201d she said. \u201cYou have to raise yourself at the same time. And just be so radically kind to yourself about how imperfect it is.\u201d<\/p>\n

Garner acknowledged that parenting across two households brings both sacrifice and growth. She said each parent must fill a wider range of roles when the other is not there.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a little bit of loss in that, but there\u2019s also something gained in that,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jennifer Garner\u2019s fame did not protect her from a fear familiar to many single parents: wondering whether she could support herself and her children. During an appearance on the \u201cAspire with Emma Grede\u201d podcast, the actress revealed that she \u201cpanicked\u201d after her marriage to Ben Affleck ended. After stepping back from her career to raise…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":462,"featured_media":52460,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-52457","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-television"],"yoast_head":"\nJennifer Garner Says She \u2018Panicked\u2019 Over Finances After Divorce From Ben Affleck<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Jennifer Garner reveals the financial fear she faced after her split from Ben Affleck while raising their three children.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/2026\/09\/jennifer-garner-says-she-panicked-over-finances-after-divorce-from-ben-affleck.html\" \/>\n<meta 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