14 DAY TRIAL // By Hollywood standards, Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck’s marriage lasted an eternity for making it past the 10-year threshold. The two announced their decision to divorce one day after the 10th wedding anniversary but promised to keep the proceedings amicable for the sake of the 3 children they have together.
Behind closed doors, things are anything but amicable, Radar Online reports, citing sources close to the couple. Ben, for one, is determined to try and get full custody of the kids and he’s even come up with a plan to “outsmart” Jennifer on that.
The divorce takes a nasty turn
Neither Ben nor Jennifer spoke publicly about what led to the decision to divorce, but rumor has it that she grew tired of putting up with his cheating, drunken binges and gambling addiction. He was not the father she expected him to be for the children, nor was he the husband she thought she’d married.
In the end, after years of trying to work things out, she gave up on him.
Now, Ben is set on proving that he can be as responsible a parent as she is, the aforementioned e-zine says. The catch is that he’s doing it so he can get full custody.
He’s been spending a lot of time with the children in recent weeks, traveling back and forth to make that happen.
“Ben’s attorney has advised him that he needs to be around as much as possible to show that he’s responsible and involved in his children’s everyday lives,” an insider explains. “He wants joint legal and physical custody - he doesn’t want to let Jen take the kids away from him. But those kids are Jen’s main priority and she wants sole physical custody. It’s turning into a bitter fight.”
“Ben can go to really dark places”
According to the same report, Ben’s lifestyle and his refusal to get help for his drinking and gambling issues can occasionally take him to “really dark places.” When that happens, Jennifer doesn’t want him around the children and she will supposedly use that as argument to get full custody and limit his time with them.
He’s trying to prevent that by filing for custody as well, and hopes a judge will see the efforts he’s been making and rule in his favor.