Ben Affleck publicly thanks Jennifer Garner, plus more news

By Wonderwall.com Editors 1:58pm PST, Feb 20, 2020

Ben Affleck thanks Jennifer Garner

Ben Affleck has been more candid than ever about his struggles with alcohol addiction and his split from Jennifer Garner, in large part because he's promoting "The Way Back," about a former basketball star's struggle with addiction and getting clean. On Tuesday, Feb. 29, the New York Times published an expansive interview with Ben in which he called his divorce from Jen "the biggest regret of my life" and admitted his drinking fueled their "marital problems" before they split in 2015. Ben's openness continued Thursday, courtesy of ABC News' Diane Sawyer, who spoke with the actor and producer in a pre-taped interview about his history of alcohol use, which started when he was young, having grown up with a grandmother who took her own life and an alcoholic father and aunt. Discussing his determination to get — and stay — sober, he said that he wished his dad had been there for him during his "formative years" and that he doesn't want the three kids he shares with Jen "to pay for my sins." After showing the interview, Diane paused to read a note Ben had written in which he publicly thanked Jen. "What I want to say publicly and privately is, 'Thank you,'" Diane said, reading the letter (via GMA). "Thank you for being thoughtful, considerate, responsible," she continued, "… and a great mom and person.'" "The Way Back" hits theaters March 6.

Keep reading to find out which A-list celeb once scaled a fence to crash Kate Hudson's party …

Kate Hudson reveals which A-list party crasher scaled a fence to get into her party

If Kate Hudson has learned one thing from her decades of Hollywood party throwing, it's that Tom Cruise really did do his own stunts in the "Mission: Impossible" movies. The actress stopped by "Ellen" this week with her brother and podcast cohost, Oliver Hudson, and the siblings waxed nostalgic for a bit about their "Naughty" habit of throwing huge parties at their parents home when their folks, Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell, were away. "As we got a little bit older and, like, started hanging with our parents, our parents came to our parties at their house," Kate told Ellen DeGeneres (via E! News). "So, we'd throw the party and our parents would just show up." Oliver jumped in to joke that while "Kate would invite the industry people," he would "invite the riffraff." (Hey, life's about balance!) The pair then recalled one throw down that got so massive Kate put herself on security duty and stood by the door to make sure everyone coming in had actually been invited. "There's like 400 people at my parents' house," she continued, remembering the story. "I'm kind of freaking out a little bit … I see someone scaling, literally scaling, an eight-foot gate at my parents' house." She watched the party crasher make his way over the gate then do a "back handspring thing" to complete his acrobatic breaking and entering. As she went to yell at him she stopped. It was Tom Cruise. "He is Mission: Impossible," she marveled. "It was wild."

Miranda Lambert made post-split album 'The Weight of These Wings' for her own 'sanity'

In 2016, following her high-profile split from husband Blake Shelton, Miranda Lambert released an album unlike any of her previous recordings. Praised by critics and fans alike, "The Weight of These Wings" was inspired by heartbreak, but as Pitchfork put it, the music was "more focused on moving on and growing up than lashing out or telling all." It was also extremely long for a country album — and did little to court fans of the singer and guitarist's wry sense of humor. But as she told an audience this week at the 2020 Country Radio Seminar in Nashville during an onstage chat with a rep from AMG, she almost had no choice but to make the album the way she did. "I needed to make 'The Weight of These Wings' for my sanity and my songwriting ability," Miranda explained, according to Billboard. "It was dramatic. It was 24 songs and most of them were sad. I was a little bit exhausted of always keeping the sassy and headbanging. In my life, I was tired because I was going through something hard. I wanted to be honest. I've always been honest." These days, Miranda seems much happier and more at ease. Last month, she celebrated her one-year wedding anniversary with Brendan McLoughlin, a New York City cop she married in secret in early 2019. And as she told the Radio Seminar audience, she's as proud as ever to continue making decisions based on her own self-understanding. "I've never strayed away from exactly who I am," she said. "At times it's not helpful in business for me to just be who I am. That's the only advice I've gotten from my mom. She said, 'You just need to know who you are and stick with it.'"

Tristan Thompson chimes in on Khloe Kardashian and True Thompson's 'great morning' together

Khloe Kardashian and her 22-month-old daughter True Thompson shared some sweet mommy-and-daughter time together on Wednesday, Feb. 19. "Great morning!" Khloe captioned a shot of the two in their flower and Sesame Street doll-filled living room. In the photo, Khloe's throwing a peace sign in the air as True smiles from her high chair beside a huge stuffed bear. The post was so cute it attracted the attention of True's dad Tristan Thomspon, who chimed in to say, "Morning Mommy and Tutu!!" Earlier in the week, a source told People that Khloe, who split from Tristan last year after he was accused of cheating on her with family friend Jordyn Woods, has "moved on" from the drama and is happily focused on co-parenting True with her ex. "[The split] is not really anything that Khloé talks about now," said the insider. "It happened a year ago, it was rough, but she has moved on. She has worked hard to move past all of the negativity."

Meghan McCain was all for Elizabeth Warren's Bloomberg takedown at the Democratic debate

Despite her conservative leanings, Meghan McCain was among the celebs who weighed in on the Las Vegas Democratic debate on Wednesday, Feb. 19. It was the first debate for former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who by most accounts Took a verbal beating from Senator Elizabeth Warren. Former Vice President Joe Biden along with Senator Bernie Sanders, Senator Amy Klobuchar and Mayor Pete Buttigieg were onstage too, but on Twitter, the conversation primarily seemed stuck on Warren versus Bloomberg. As McCain wrote on Twitter, she was all about Warren's "Bloomie" takedown. "YES WARREN, FINISH HIM! Here for the Bloomberg roast," she tweeted at one point (via Billboard). "This is like a really good housewives reunion. But one of the messy ones," she joked later. "We should have had @Andy moderate," she added, shouting out Andy Cohen. John Legend weighed in as well, throwing his support behind "#PresidentWarren" on social media. Sarah Silverman, meanwhile, settled in for the debate chaos as she often settles in for any kind of drama. "Just ate an edible#DemDebate," she posted. Whatever gets you through the next nine months girl.

Gwyneth Paltrow hosts a makeup-free dinner for Demi Moore, Kate Hudson and more stars

Maybe Alicia Keys' anti-makeup stance is catching on. This week, Gwyneth Paltrow hosted some famous friends for a makeup-free dinner party where guests were asked to come fresh-based to the meal. Judging from photos and Gwyneth's Instagram, those guests included Demi Moore and her daughter Rumer Willis, artist Alexandra Grant (whose fan following seems to keep growing ever since she and Keanu Reeves went public with their romance), Kate Hudson, Erin Foster, Rachel Zoe and others. "Had the immense pleasure of interviewing @grantalexandra one of THE most brilliant, expansive, talented thinkers I have ever had the pleasure of speaking with," Gwyneth captioned a shot of herself with Alexandra and Demi. "A beautiful gathering in celebration of beauty just the way we come." she continued, joking, "The one on my left ain't so bad either. #nomakeup #goopglow." According to ET, the ladies enjoyed a healthy menu of king salmon steaks kale and sweet potato fries and more while sipping vodka and botanical spritzers.

Shay Mitchell credits her close friends with getting her through postpartum depression

Shay Mitchell is giving big love to her network of close friends, whom she credits with helping her overcome postpartum depression four months after she and Matte Babel welcomed their daughter, Atlas. Speaking to Us Weekly on Wednesday, Feb. 19, the "You" star said her "support system" has been key to getting past her emotional challenges recently. "Because I think especially having a newborn, you're going up and down with your emotions and dealing with all new things that I've never had to deal with before," she explained. "It's all the unknown is what I call it. So having a good group of friends and people around you who have either been through it, or can just be an ear to listen to all of your thoughts, and stories of what's been going on [is key]. But you know, I have a really, really good support team and so I've been really fortunate with that." Added Shay: "Being a new mom, it's all about supporting each other."

Gigi Hadid recalls being told she didn't have a the 'right' runway body early in her career

At Paris Fashion Week last month, Gigi Hadid walked in Jean-Paul Gaultier's Haute Couture show. As she told i-D magazine recently, the designer holds a special place in her heart. When she first got into modeling, Gigi, now 24, recalled, she was often told her body wasn't "right" for high fashion. "At the time I was still starting out in my career, I was coming out of high school, I still had my volleyball body. It was a body that I loved. I knew how hard I worked to have those muscles, to be curved in those places – I kind of miss it now," she said. "At the time, people were hard on me and tried to say that I didn't have a runway body." Eventually, the modeling industry obviously picked up on the fact that she looks amazing on the catwalk. But Gaultier was the first designer who really gave her a chance in that world. "For Jean-Paul to have me at his ready-to-wear show in 2015 … Not only to have me, but also to put me in an outfit that didn't cover a lot — there were still stylists or designers at that time who were putting me in their shows, but putting me in something that really covered my body," she explained. "So, for him to make me feel like he wanted me to shine in that way, it really meant a lot to me as a young model." Within just a few years, Gigi joined the ranks of the world's highest-paid models, according to Forbes. Gaultier has said his January 2020 show would be his last.

Bethenny Frankel to launch 'Apprentice'-esque reality series

Bethenny Frankel is heading back to reality TV, this time with a focus on aspiring business execs. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the "Apprentice"-esque "The Big Shot With Bethenny" will follow contestants as they compete for a spot on the Skinnygirl founder's executive team. "Aside from motherhood, what truly defines me as a person is being a driven, passionate and hard-working woman determined to make the impossible possible," the "Real Housewives" alum said in a statement about the eight-episode series. No premiere date has been announced yet, but the show is set to air on WarnerMedia's forthcoming streaming platform HBO Max, which launches in May.

Amanda Bynes teases new clothing line

Less than a week after she announced she was engaged to "the love of my life," Amanda Bynes returned to Instagram on Thursday, Feb. 19, to tease the clothing line she says she has in the works. "Sup Instagram. Just wanted to say hi to all my followers,"Us Weekly). "I really wanted to say I appreciate you guys so much for supporting me." She went on say she was filming the clip while having dinner with a student advisor from her recent alma mater, the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising. "I'm really looking forward to starting my clothing line and I'm hoping that in the near future it will be out online," she added. Amanda graduated from FIT in June following a stint in rehab. She has said in the past she began struggling with mental health and substance abuse issues after having given up acting in 2010 following a busy early career as a child star.