I still love him! - NEW HOPE FOR JEN & BEN

The actor has nothing but admiration for his ex-wife

A week after opening up about his painful divorce from Jennifer Garner, Ben Affleck has shared even more intimate details of how he’s turning around his troubled life. And Woman’s Day can reveal that the revelations have brought old feelings to the surface for his ex-wife, who’s told pals she feels “emotional, tearful and proud”.

“Ben had Jen’s blessing to open up, but she had no idea what he was going to say and it came as something of a shock – especially given he’d never told her many of those things to her face,” a family friend has revealed.

“It was incredibly emotional for her to read and obviously a huge tug on her heartstrings. They’ve remained so close and she’s watched him overhaul his life and become a better father to their children, so she’s incredibly proud.”

The actor is opening up about his battle with booze while promoting his new film The Way Back, in which he plays a high school basketball coach fighting alcoholism.

He and Jennifer – who are parents to Violet, 14, Seraphina, 11, and Samuel, seven – separated in 2015, with Ben admitting his drinking spiralled out of control as his marriage failed.