How JENNIFER LOPEZ became the new Elizabeth Taylor
Australian Women’s Weekly NZ|March 2024
At 54, Jennifer Lopez is riding high, launching her new "musical experience" This Is Me ... Now and basking in her marriage to Ben Affleck. But who is the woman behind the glamour? 
CHRISSY ILEY
How JENNIFER LOPEZ became the new Elizabeth Taylor

Love. Love. Love. That’s what defines J.Lo. It’s undone her so many times, yet she still believes in love even when it doesn’t believe in her – and that’s what makes her one of us. She’s vulnerable, yes. She thinks that’s what makes her real and it does, of course. But in fact, we don’t like her to be too vulnerable. We like her to experience the highs and lows of her love rollercoaster, but for her to always make it through. We like her as a survivor.

It helps that J.Lo is shimmeringly gorgeous at 54. Her fashion sense has never been to follow trends but just to look hot, while maybe having the latest Gucci or Versace in her wardrobe. It means she’s aspirational yet relatable. It also means she’s classic and ageless. Her voluminous high ponytail was created by one of the greatest hair tastemakers, Chris Appleton, who calls it “the fierce ponytail”. Perhaps she is as fierce as she is vulnerable. She certainly embraces extremes and that’s a winning combo.

She has had many loves and four husbands. She generally likes to marry the men she falls for, which has proved somewhat messy. I called her a latter-day Dame Elizabeth Taylor to her face and she loves it. She likes to change her name to theirs and be fully surrendered. Thus she is now Mrs Affleck, having married in 2022 the man she was first engaged to in 2002.

This story is from the March 2024 edition of Australian Women’s Weekly NZ.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the March 2024 edition of Australian Women’s Weekly NZ.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM AUSTRALIAN WOMEN’S WEEKLY NZView All
PRETTY WOMAN
Australian Women’s Weekly NZ

PRETTY WOMAN

Dial up the joy with a mood-boosting self-care session done in the privacy of your own home. It’s a blissful way to banish the winter blues.

time-read
3 mins  |
July 2024
Hitting a nerve
Australian Women’s Weekly NZ

Hitting a nerve

Regulating the vagus nerve with its links to depression, anxiety, arthritis and diabetes could aid physical and mental wellbeing.

time-read
5 mins  |
July 2024
The unseen Rovals
Australian Women’s Weekly NZ

The unseen Rovals

Candid, behind the scenes and neverbefore-seen images of the royal family have been released for a new exhibition.

time-read
2 mins  |
July 2024
Great read
Australian Women’s Weekly NZ

Great read

In novels and life - there's power in the words left unsaid.

time-read
2 mins  |
July 2024
Winter dinner winners
Australian Women’s Weekly NZ

Winter dinner winners

Looking for some thrifty inspiration for weeknight dinners? Try our tasty line-up of budget-concious recipes that are bound to please everyone at the table.

time-read
3 mins  |
July 2024
Winter baking with apples and pears
Australian Women’s Weekly NZ

Winter baking with apples and pears

Celebrate the season of apples and pears with these sweet bakes that will keep the cold weather blues away.

time-read
7 mins  |
July 2024
The wines and lines mums
Australian Women’s Weekly NZ

The wines and lines mums

Once only associated with glamorous A-listers, cocaine is now prevalent with the soccer-mum set - as likely to be imbibed at a school fundraiser as a nightclub. The Weekly looks inside this illegal, addictive, rising trend.

time-read
10+ mins  |
July 2024
Former ballerina'sBATTLE with BODY IMAGE
Australian Women’s Weekly NZ

Former ballerina'sBATTLE with BODY IMAGE

Auckland author Sacha Jones reveals how dancing led her to develop an eating disorder and why she's now on a mission to educate other women.

time-read
7 mins  |
July 2024
MEET RUSSIA'S BRAVEST WOMEN
Australian Women’s Weekly NZ

MEET RUSSIA'S BRAVEST WOMEN

When Alexei Navalny died in a brutal Arctic prison, Vladimir Putin thought he had triumphed over his most formidable opponent. Until three courageous women - Alexei's mother, wife and daughter - took up his fight for freedom.

time-read
8 mins  |
July 2024
IT'S NEVER TOO LATE TO START
Australian Women’s Weekly NZ

IT'S NEVER TOO LATE TO START

Responsible for keeping the likes of Jane Fonda and Jamie Lee Curtis in shape, Malin Svensson is on a mission to motivate those in midlife to move more.

time-read
5 mins  |
July 2024