Affleck with Lopez: A thing of the past?

New York, Sept. 14 (Reuters): Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck, the Hollywood celebrity cou- ple, have split, at least temporarily, sources close to Affleck said today.

The pair was seen on Friday in the Los Angeles area boarding planes to different US cities, after postponing weekend wedding plans due to a media frenzy, said the sources.

The sources said that sometime last week Affleck called close associates telling them that he and Lopez had broken up. Yesterday, Affleck was spotted gambling and sunning himself without Lopez at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, they said.

Sources said Lopez on Friday flew to her Miami residence and had made plans to head to Canada where she is filming a new movie with Richard Gere. It was not certain if the break-up would be permanent, the sources said. Representatives for the pair could not immediately be reached for comment.

The pair, who reportedly planned to wed today at an estate in the hills near Santa Barbara, California, said in a joint statement last Wednesday that they had postponed the nuptials because of unwanted publicity.

However, after making that announcement, the couple was seen together at the trendy Los Angeles restaurant, The Ivy.

Lopez, 33, and Affleck, 31, are currently America’s hottest celebrity couple, but doubts were cast over their engagement when stories surfaced in tabloids and magazines last month about Affleck visiting a strip club without Lopez in July. Lopez publicly shrugged off Affleck’s night out.

One source familiar with the couple said that a request by Lopez for a prenuptial agreement may have chilled wedding plans.

The couple also suffered bad publicity when their first movie together, Gigli, was panned by critics and flopped at the box office in the summer.