Jennifer Lopez’s high-profile romances — past and present — have long been headline and tabloid fodder. Now they’re movie material.
The “Hustlers” singer-actor, joined by husband Ben Affleck, debuted her musical spectacular, “This Is Me…Now: A Love Story,” at the Dolby Theatre on Tuesday. Lopez hit the red carpet just hours after revealing in a recent interview what went into her latest creative saga: $20 million, encouragement from Affleck and initial skepticism from supporters.
“Everybody thought I was crazy,” she said in a cover story for Variety published Tuesday. “And by the way, I thought I was crazy.”
Prime Video, which will begin streaming Lopez’s film on Friday, describes “This Is Me…Now: A Love Story” as a “narrative-driven cinematic odyssey, steeped in mythological storytelling and personal healing.” The abstract 65-minute film stars Lopez, 54, as a hopeless romantic and charts her journey into finding love worth singing about, literally. The musical is a companion to her forthcoming album “The Is Me…Now,” also out Friday.
“This Is Me…Now: A Love Story” touts a star-studded cast including Trevor Noah, Kim Petras, Sofia Vergara, Neil deGrasse Tyson and Affleck (of course). Jane Fonda, Lopez’s “Monster-in-Law” co-star, also makes an appearance, but that came with some initial skepticism.
Fonda said she was on board for Lopez’s project and felt invested in her rekindled relationship with Affleck, 51, but expressed concern when the “Argo” director went viral for seemingly looking “miserable” at the 2023 Grammy Awards.
“I got real scared, you know, with all that s— about the Grammys and he looks unhappy and I’m like, ‘Oh, my God, what’s happening?’” Fonda reportedly says in the film’s accompanying documentary. Lopez reassured the Hollywood icon and activist that the meme wasn’t an indication of any romantic tension, according to Variety.
The “Jenny From the Block” singer also heard skepticism from long-time producing partner Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas, who reportedly worried the musical would be “too personal” for audiences. She told the magazine that the singer “never won me over.”
Lopez also failed to entice realty TV star Khloé Kardashian, who declined to make an appearance for the project.
Even if “This Is Me…Now” takes inspiration from the vulnerable love letters Affleck penned to his wife (they married in Las Vegas in 2022), he stood in her corner. Affleck saw the final cut last year.
“He said, ‘You made a movie. For you. You made a great movie. You did it,’” Lopez told Variety. “Honestly, I don’t care what happens now. That is the biggest kind of compliment that I could get.”
Between a brand-new album, a musical movie and a documentary tracking the making of that movie, Lopez invested $20 million into the latest chapter of her career. For the multi-hyphenate, expressing her love, heartbreak and growthis priceless. She also doesn’t seem too worried about what others might think.
“I think when you put out any project, you get to a point in your life where you’re not doing it for every single person in the world to have the most beautiful opinion of it,” she told Variety.
Lopez added: “I do think this is a beautiful project. The message is strong and the message is true. I think it’s a true piece of art, and I’m very proud of it.”
“This Is Me…Now: A Love Story” is written by Lopez and Matt Walton, and directed by Dave Meyers.
This story originally appeared on LA Times
