For one day, it wasn’t about Hollywood, headlines, or past drama. It was about their son.
Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck were spotted together celebrating the 14th birthday of their son Samuel at a paintball park in Castaic. Paparazzi captured the former couple arriving side by side, dressed casually and focused entirely on the teenage birthday boy and his friends.
Despite their divorce in 2015, the two have consistently shown that when it comes to their children, they stand united. Along with Samuel, they also share daughters Violet, 20, and Seraphina, 17.
The paintball outing looked relaxed and surprisingly normal. No red carpets. No glam squads. Just parents showing up.
Garner has previously opened up about the realities of raising children across two households. In an emotional interview, she explained that when kids grow up in separate families, each parent often has to become both the “yin and the yang.” She admitted that she sometimes feels like both mom and dad, while Affleck carries that same dual role in his own home.
“It’s something you just learn to navigate,” she shared, adding that she’s trying not to overthink parenting and instead focus on letting go where she can.
Over the years, the exes have maintained what many describe as one of Hollywood’s most peaceful co-parenting relationships. They attend birthdays together, celebrate holidays as a unit, and occasionally spend family time without tension.
For Samuel’s 14th, it was another reminder: whatever happened between them, their kids still come first.
