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Gwyneth Paltrow dated Ben Affleck on and off between 1997 and 2000. After they broke up, Affleck went on to date Jennifer Lopez in an extremely high-profile relationship, but he still spoke highly of his ex. Years later, Paltrow had some positive words to share about Affleck. On a podcast, Paltrow was asked to compare her relationships with Affleck and Brad Pitt. She gave her opinion of what both men were like in bed.

Gwyneth Paltrow spoke about her relationship with Ben Affleck

In 2023, Paltrow appeared on the Call Her Daddy podcast. Host Alex Cooper asked her to play a game of “Brad or Ben” in which she compared Affleck and Pitt. Cooper asked who Paltrow thought was better in bed. Paltrow said the question was “really hard” to answer.

“Brad was like the sort of major chemistry, love of your life, kind of, at the time and then Ben was, like, technically excellent,” she said (per Today). “I can’t believe my daughter is listening to this!”

Rupert Everett, Geoffrey Rush, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Ben Affleck pose with awards on the red carpet. Affleck kisses Paltrow on the cheek.
Rupert Everett, Geoffrey Rush, Gwyneth Paltrow, Ben Affleck | LUCY NICHOLSON/AFP via Getty Images

Cooper shouted out Lopez, who married Affleck in 2022.

“God bless J.Lo and everything she is getting over there!” she said.

When reflecting on her relationship with Affleck, Paltrow said she realized he wasn’t ready for a serious girlfriend. She also believed that she was using the relationship to work through some of her own problems.

“It’s interesting,” she told Howard Stern in 2018 (per Us Weekly). “I think there’s certain boyfriends where you are trying to work stuff out, right? Like, you’re trying to heal certain stuff from your childhood and he was very much a lesson in that way. I’m not sure exactly what I was trying to heal in that instance, but it was … he was, you know. It was specific.”

Ben Affleck said he still considered Gwyneth Paltrow a friend after their breakup 

After Affleck and Paltrow officially ended their relationship, he went on to date and become engaged to Lopez. Rumors soon flew that the new relationship horrified Paltrow. Affleck was quick to defend his ex.

“Gwyneth is one of the most gracious and well-mannered people I’ve ever met,” Affleck told Vanity Fair, “and when I saw her at the, what’s it called, the shivah, in the middle of what had to be the worst time of her life, she said, ‘You know that’s not true. Please tell her it’s not true. I wish you guys only the best.’”

The two actors have been in movies together 

When Affleck and Paltrow dated, they starred in two films together. In 1997, both appeared in Shakespeare in Love, a film for which Paltrow received an Oscar for Best Actress.

Ben Affleck sits in the drivers seat of a car. Gwyneth Paltrow lays across his chest. A still from the movie 'Bounce.'
Ben Affleck and Gwyneth Paltrow in ‘Bounce’ | Eric Lee/Miramax Films/Newsmakers
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Ben Affleck Denied That Gwyneth Paltrow Was Horrified by His Engagement to Jennifer Lopez

In 2000, they both appeared in Bounce. They play a couple in the romantic drama, but when they signed on to act in the movie, they were broken up. While Affleck was initially hesitant to play a romantic partner to his ex, she pushed him to take the part.