Inside Ben Affleck's $8.1m Georgia estate where he married Jennifer Lopez

The mansion is a re-creation of a Southern antebellum Greek Revival plantation home

Ben Affleck first bought his Georgia home, referred to as the Big House, in 2003 when he and Jennifer Lopez were first dating. Photo: Engel & Volkers Huntsville
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It seems Ben Affleck's life has come full circle.

The Argo actor, who recently married Jennifer Lopez after they famously rekindled their romance last year, initially bought his sprawling, 35-hectare Georgia estate in 2003, when the couple were first dating.

It was reported at the time that they were planning to build a wedding chapel on the property, but that never happened, as the pair called off their first engagement in 2004.

Now, the couple chose the Hampton Island home, which is referred to as the Big House, as the location for their second wedding, a lavish affair that took place on Saturday.

Scroll through the gallery below to see photos of Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck together over the years

It comes one month after their first and more spontaneous wedding in Las Vegas, during which Lopez wore a dress by Lebanese designer Zuhair Murad, following a rising trend of people hosting more than one wedding event, such as Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker, who also wed first in Sin City.

Affleck first purchased the property for $7.11 million. He then put it on the market in 2018 for $8.9m, cutting that by 15 per cent in 2019, to $7.6m, but he didn't end up selling it.

The mansion, about 45 minutes south of Savannah, is a re-creation of a Southern antebellum Greek Revival plantation home, according to the property listing by Engel & Volkers. It overlooks the North Newport River, "considered one of the Crown Jewels of Georgia's coast".

The two-storey house is spread over 6,000 square feet and has a veranda that looks over the river.

It comes with three bedrooms, four full bathrooms and one half-bathroom, a private deep-water dock that's home to a boat called Pilar, as well as historically accurate details such as 4.5-metre ceilings, arch fireplaces and pine floors.

Also part of the estate is the Summer Cottage, a single-storey home with a metal roof and prep kitchen that's built specifically for the owners to entertain during the summer.

Then there's the Oyster House, a 10,000-square-foot wooden property with three master suites and five bedrooms with bunk beds "salvaged from marine vessels".

The island it all sits on measures about 1,821 hectares and is also home to an equestrian centre, several cottages for members, a helipad, a farm area and two spas.

Watch the video below to see more of the house:

At the moment, it's awash with security, as the couple host their wedding celebrations among family and friends. Guards reportedly blocked the entrance to the enclave where Affleck’s estate is located, and a five-kilometre no-fly zone was implemented by authorities, reported The Daily Mail. Security boats were also spotted patrolling the nearby river.

The nuptials took place during a three-day weekend of festivities, with British-Indian life coach Jay Shetty, a former Hindu monk, officiating at the ceremony, for which Lopez wore a custom couture Ralph Lauren dress.

Guests included director Kevin Smith, who posted a photo of himself at the event, as well as Affleck's long-time friend, actor Matt Damon.

Affleck’s children — Violet, 16, Seraphina, 13, and Samuel, 10, who he co-parents with ex-wife Jennifer Garner — were also there, alongside Lopez’s twins, Max and Emme, 14, who she shares with former husband Marc Anthony.

While the happy couple clearly decided the property was the perfect spot for their lavish ceremony, they have been house-hunting in Los Angeles for months. They were spotted in April touring The Manor, the 123-roomed Los Angeles mega-mansion built by TV mogul Aaron Spelling.

The Daily Mail reported that Lopez and Affleck toured the 56,500-square-foot property, which was said to be on the market for $165m, after their previous choice, a $55m home in Bel Air, fell through.

Built on the site of the home previously owned by the late White Christmas actor, Bing Crosby, The Manor was the childhood home of actress Tori Spelling.

Affleck and Lopez didn't buy the Spelling manor and it was later reported they'd purchased a massive Beverly Hills mansion that once sold for $60m. Now, however, they've said they're not buying a new place at all, and instead renovating Lopez's $28m Bel-Air home.

The pair, widely known as Bennifer, have married 20 years after they first started dating in 2002. They were engaged but broke up in 2004. In the years after, they both married other partners.

In May last year, they went public as a couple once again and announced their second engagement in April.

“Love is beautiful. Love is kind. And it turns out love is patient. Twenty years patient. Exactly what we wanted,” Lopez said in the newsletter.

The newsletter was signed “Mrs Jennifer Lynn Affleck".

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Updated: August 22, 2022, 6:10 AM