Jennifer Lopez revealed that playing Leslie Rodgers in her new action crime thriller ‘Parker’ during her divorce was like therapy for her. While speaking with ‘Extra‘ host Mario Lopez in Las Vegas, the actress spoke about playing a woman struggling through a painful divorce, and how it hit close to home.
“The timing was crazy, because when they offered me the role, it hadn’t happened,” Lopez explained. “So I was just thinking about the character and that she was at the worst time in her life. But, when we actually started shooting the film, I was in the worst time of my life…going through my own divorce.”
Lopez added that when you have children, you can’t show them what you’re going through. “So you have to be so strong all day…when you’re working you have to be professional all day…but in front of the camera, I got to act like how I felt, so it was like therapy for me.”
The actress added that she met her boyfriend, Casper Smart, at a time when she was ready to relax and have fun. “It had been months where [it was] hard to get out of bed every day cause we separated in June, announced it in July,” Lopez said. “So by the end of the year, I was like, ‘it’s time to go out and have a little bit of fun.’ It’s time to start picking up the pieces and living your life, which is hard after something like that.”
Lopez added that she doesn’t necessarily think she needs t get married again to be happy. “The most important thing… is that you realize you can be just as happy on your own and you have to actually be that before you can be in a great relationship.”
Discussing her ex-husband, Marc Anthony, Lopez said “those people that have been in my life are people that I cared about and cared about me…sometimes things don’t work out. It’s a sad thing, but you know what? You keep going and life is to be lived.”
Watch the video of Lopez discussing her divorce and filming ‘Parker’ below.
Written by: Karen Benardello
