Ralph Fiennes Was Jennifer Lopez's "Relationship Decoy" For Her Romance With Ben Affleck During Making Of Maid In Manhattan

Ralph Fiennes was used as a "decoy" to distract attention away from Jennifer Lopez's relationship with Ben Affleck in the early 2000s.

During an appearance on Watch What Happens Live, the King's Man star, 59, claimed he was "set up" as he recalled going out for dinner with Maid in Manhattan co-star while shooting the movie — when the 'On the Floor' hitmaker was in the process of divorcing Cris Judd and secretly dating Affleck. 

Asked by host Andy Cohen if he was a decoy for the pair's relationship then, Fiennes said Cohen: "I was, I was. Yeah, yeah, I was set up.

“I was asked out to dinner with J. Lo and her manager and her agent … We had a nice dinner, chatty chatty chatty. … [Afterward,] I think I was walking home, but [we gave each other a] peck on the cheek goodnight.”

But as they were saying goodbye, “a paparazzi — just one — pops out” and took a photo of Fiennes and Lopez.

He continued: "But somehow, the pictures were angled so that as she’s walking away, [it looks like] I’m walking after her. And I think it said the next day [in the New York] Post, ‘It’s Ralph!'”

Fiennes doesn't bare a grudge towards the couple — who married this summer after rekindling their romance in 2021, 17 years after they split — and was happy when they reconciled.

He said: “My reaction [when I learned they got back together] was, ‘Good luck to them.' "

— BANG SHOWBIZ

Photo: TPG News/Click Photos