Back in August, Ben Affleck checked into rehab for the third time.
The actor did so at the behest of his estranged wife, Jennifer Garner, who staged an intervention and then drove Affleck to rehab herself.
Yes, even though Affleck and Garner have long been separated and seem to have no plans to reconcile, Garner took the steps she felt were necessary in order to rescue the father of her children from the brink of death.
In such dire circumstances, you might assume that a man with as much to live for as Ben would take the situation seriously and devote himself to the hard work of getting sober.
Sadly, you would be wrong.
We’ve already told you that Affleck has left rehab several times over the course of his treatment.
Ben’s reps say that it’s so that he can work out at his home gym (as though the posh Malibu facility where he’s drying out doesn’t have high-end exercise equipment), but others claim the Oscar winner simply wanted to get in some quality time with his 22-year-old girlfriend.
Whatever the case, Ben went against the advice of the doctors in charge of his treatment when he repeatedly took trips home instead of focusing on his sobriety.
When pressured by loved ones to take his treatment more seriously, Ben agreed to stay on longer than the four weeks he had originally planned.
But now he’s ready — by his determination — to return to his daily routine.
And to the chagrin of many, it seems his first order of business is to get in some hard partying.
Ben’s BFF Matt Damon will celebrate his 48th birthday next week, and it seems Affleck has every intention of helping him mark the occasion in Vegas.
The actors and several of their friends are planning to descend on Sin City this weekend in time for the Khabib vs. McGregor UFC fight, and it seems Ben wouldn’t miss it for the world — whether Matt likes it or not.
“Ben’s invited,” a source tells Radar Online, “but it’s more like they’re trying to dis-invite him.”
Yes, it seems Affleck may be in store for another intervention — and this time it’ll be his friends begging him not to put his sobriety at risk so early in the process.
“He thinks he’s okay to go to the party,” says the insider.
“It’s been planned for months, way before his stint in rehab.”
The source adds:
“Those who are going to Vegas for Matt are concerned.
“They think Ben will blow all the fun because everyone will be so focused on him, if he’s doing okay — and if he’s drinking.”
Okay, so it would be nice if they were more concerned with Ben’s life or death situation than their own good time, but whatever.
The important thing is, Matt’s entourage has reportedly hatched a plan to keep Ben out of Vegas this weekend.
“The plan is to tell Jennifer not to let him go,” the source says.
“They are hoping, like before, she will lay down the law and he’ll listen.”
Well, Jen does seem to have his best interest at heart, and it sounds like she’ll do just about anything to keep him safe.
Sounds like Ben really found a keeper … in his ex.
Hopefully, Jen is prepared for when Ben finally sobers up and realizes that.
