• “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” star Jen Affleck has a connection to actors Ben and Casey Affleck.

• Her husband, Zac Affleck, is a second cousin of the actors.

• The couple is in the spotlight after a heated argument between them was seen on the show.

The star of the surprise reality hit The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives has been thrust into the spotlight after the show featured a major fight between her and her husband – who happens to be a second cousin of Ben and Casey Affleck.

According to The Wrap, the show had the most-watched premiere of any unscripted show on Hulu in 2024, surpassing even “The Kardashians.”

It features eight women from “Mormon MomTok,” including Taylor Frankie Paul, who made headlines in 2022 when she announced her divorce after developing feelings for a friend’s husband. The couple had been engaging in “soft swinging.”

But it is influencer Jen Affleck’s relationship with her husband Zac Affleck that has caught fans’ attention.

In the final three episodes of the first season, which premiered last week, the eight women traveled to Las Vegas to celebrate the birthday of one of them.

Zac is one of the two men who came along. In the sixth episode, he threatened to divorce Jen after she and the others went to a Chippendales strip show.

They reconciled in the following episode, but other cast members criticized Zac’s behavior and advised Jen to end the relationship. Jen said that after filming the series, she decided to stay because “there’s a side that people haven’t seen, and I really believe he’s an amazing person.”

Here’s what you should know about Zac and Jen Affleck and their relationship.

Jens’ parents met at Brigham Young University in Utah

In an August episode of the Weekly Trash podcast, Jen said her mother, Maria, is originally from Ecuador and converted to Mormonism when she met a group of missionaries. Maria met Jen’s father, Rick, when they both attended Brigham Young University in Utah.

Jen said she grew up in the Bay Area of ​​Northern California with two biological siblings, two adopted siblings and several foster children. Her family moved to Utah when she was 14, but Jen said she struggled to adjust because she came from a low-income family.

“I feel like when we moved to Utah, we went from being a normal family to being a broken family because we had such a hard time navigating it and it was so hard for all of us,” Jen said. “I moved here and thought, ‘Where do I belong?'”

Zac and Jen met when she was 18 and married a year later

Jen said she met Zac on a dating app called Mutual in 2018, when she was 18 and he was 21. The couple got engaged six months later and married in the summer of 2019.

According to Jen’s Instagram page, Jen and Zac had their first child, Nora Affleck, in November 2021 and their second child, Lucas Lowell Affleck, was born in August 2023.

Zac comes from a family of doctors, but Jen is currently the breadwinner of the family while he studies medicine

When The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives was filmed, Zac had just graduated from Brigham Young University and was planning to study medicine to follow in the footsteps of his father and grandfather, both of whom were surgeons.

Jen also said that there is a huge wealth gap between her family and Zac’s and that she sometimes felt judged because of it.

In the pilot episode, Jen also says that she has been providing for the family, supporting them with money from her social media career while Zac is studying medicine.

In the season one finale, Zac pushed for them to leave Salt Lake City and move closer to the university where he wanted to study medicine, even though it would hurt Jen’s social media career.

Zac and Jen have never met his famous second cousins

None of the famous Afflecks appear in the reality series, but Ben Affleck is mentioned by name.

Jen said last week during an interview with People that Zac is just a “distant relative” and the couple has never met Ben or Casey Affleck.

“I hope to meet him one day!” said Jen.

Jen auditioned for the role in “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” before joining Mormon MomTok

In the podcast episode “Weekly Trash,” Jen said she was not affiliated with Mormon MomTok before filming the show. She auditioned for the television show and was accepted into the MomTok group after being cast.

Jen said the show helped her and Zac work through their marital problems before he started medical school.

Jen and Zac move to Arizona

In the season one finale of “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,” Jessi said Jen sent her a message saying she was leaving the Mormon MomTok group.

Jen also announced on TikTok in July that her husband had been accepted into medical school and that her family would be moving closer to the school.

On the Weekly Trash podcast, Jen said she hopes to be part of a second season of the show and MomTok despite her move to Arizona, south of Utah.

In an episode of The Viall Files podcast on Wednesday, Jen spoke on the show about her falling out with Zac, saying she and Zac went to therapy “nonstop” after filming wrapped.

“There were a few moments where I thought, ‘I don’t know if I want this relationship anymore,'” Jen said. But she added that she stayed with Zac because she believed he would change.

“I’m not walking away now because I love him and there’s a side that people haven’t seen and I truly believe he’s an amazing person,” Jen said. “Maybe he didn’t take responsibility on the show, but he definitely did afterward.”

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