BEN'S LIVING A DOUBLE LIFE!

Friends say the actor is putting on one big act

Ben Affleck claims life is wonderful now that Jennifer Lopez is back on his arm. “I’m very happy,” he gushed last week. “It’s a very happy time in my life. Life is good.”

And the star certainly seemed to be brimming with joy as he stepped out with his singer girlfriend at the Venice Film Festival last month, looking every bit the perfect A-list couple.

But sources say the 49-year-old is just doing what he does best – acting! “He certainly lights up for the cameras, but the guy in the tux smiling on the red carpet with no care in the world is not the real Ben,” says an insider, close to the star, who has been struggling with alcohol addiction for years and is still very much battling his demons. “He seems to be leading a double life.”

CONSTANT STRUGGLE

Indeed, Ben may brush up well for official events, but onlookers say the father-of-three – who’s had multiple stints in rehab – “looked really thin, haggard and tired” while out for a walk in New York on September 26.