Affleck's Lesson Learned

Been there, survived that. Ben Affleck says what happened to him and former fiancée Jennifer Lopez was like many of his worst fears coming true all at once.

"There was just a backlash against me and Jennifer and too much publicity. And then `Gigli' bombed. And we didn't get married," he told reporters recently, according to AP Radio.

He'd worried "what if something bad happens? What if everybody hates my movie? What if I have some public embarrassments in my personal life? Then it all happens in a month, you know, and it turns out like, `All right, well, it's not the end of the world."'

The media frenzy and "Bennifer" label taught him that his fame and career don't affect who he is, the 31-year-old actor said.

"Every movie doesn't have to work. I'm still fundamentally going to be who I am," he said. "It's healthy to want to do well at your job and all that stuff, but you know, it's not this incredibly important thing."