Why Jennifer Garner Is The Putting Her Kids First By Rejecting A Marriage Proposal After Ex Ben Affleck Married JLo
The mother of three turned down her boyfriend's proposal to focus on her family.
Tinseltown / Shutterstock Jennifer Garner and her boyfriend, John Miller, have been together for five years, yet it seems they won’t be taking steps towards marriage anytime soon. Sources reported that Miller asked Garner to marry him — and Garner said "no."
Jennifer Garner rejected John Miller’s marriage proposal for the sake of her kids’ stability.
Garner, 51, shares three children with her ex-husband, Ben Affleck, 50, who she divorced in 2018. They have joint custody of their kids: Violet, 17, Seraphina, 14, and Sam, 11, and put in a concerted effort to co-parent as smoothly as they can. But that doesn’t mean their situation is simple.
When Affleck married Jennifer Lopez in July 2022, his kids gained two step siblings, Max and Emme, both 15. Blending families is always an adjustment. Kids deserve time and space to settle into such a huge transition, especially if it’s happening under the ever-vigilant eye of paparazzi.
Unnamed sources claim that Affleck’s recent marriage to Lopez hasn’t been easy on his kids. Supposedly, Garner refused to marry Miller for that exact reason.A source reported that Garner didn’t want to subject her kids to another major change in their home life while they’re still getting used to living with Lopez’s twins.
Garner rejected Miller’s marriage proposal to avoid creating another blended-family situation for her kids.
"To invite another man into the house right now, one who has two teenage children of his own, means her children would get even less time with her, and that's just not an option,” the source stated.
Miller, 45, divorced his wife Caroline Campbell in 2014. The two share joint custody of their children, a daughter also named Violet, and a son, Quest. If Garner had accepted Miller’s proposal, her kids would have had to adjust to having two more step siblings, and Garner didn’t want their lives to change even more.
Garner and Miller first dated in 2018. They split up in 2020, yet reconciled a year later. They gave their romance a second try starting in April 2021 and have been together ever since.
It makes a certain amount of sense that Miller would propose to Garner, as getting engaged is part of the usual trajectory for a long-term relationship. Both Garner and Miller have been married before. Both have gone through rocky divorces. They’ve experienced just how destabilizing a breakup can be, especially when kids are involved.
Garner’s refusal to marry Miller at this moment shows that she’s prioritizing her kids’ needs by not rushing into anything that might uproot their sense of stability any further.
It also shows that there are numerous ways to maintain a romantic relationship; marriage doesn’t always have to be the end-goal. For Garner to say "no" to Miller's proposal illustrates the many different forms romance can take.
As for now, it appears that the two are still together, as the source maintained that "Jennifer loves John and they see each other whenever they can.” Garner might not want to marry Miller, but that doesn’t necessarily translate into a lack of love — it just means she doesn't want to be a wife.
Alexandra Blogier is a writer on YourTango's news and entertainment team. She covers celebrity gossip, pop culture analysis and all things to do with the entertainment industry.