Every day is a new horror. Today’s horror: discovering that Jen and Zac Affleck (no relation to Ben Affleck, tragically) went on The Viall Files and revealed that she tricked him into a pregnancy. No, really — that’s the word he used: “tricked.”
A little background on this delightful duo: Jen and Zac got major heat after season 1 when Zac threw a full-on tantrum about her attending a Chippendales performance in Las Vegas. His very aggressive (nothing passive about it) text messages were leaked by a fellow MomTok’er and included him calling her “disgusting.” The internet was, understandably, ready to riot.
Since then, they’ve been in crisis PR mode for season 2 of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives—though that didn’t go exactly as planned after a Halloween lap dance revealed some selective truths. Now, Jen and Zac are on a mission to convince the world they’re SOOOOOO HAPPY. Naturally, this included an interview with Nick Viall on The Viall Files, where they dropped this bombshell. (Sadly, there is no mention of the Demi and Jen feud).
Did Jen “Trick” Zac Into Getting Pregnant With A New Baby?
Jen is currently mega-pregnant with their third kiddo (what are these Mormons putting in their cereal?!), but the conversation was actually about their second baby, Lucas.
“We had one and then a second baby back to back,” Zac — dad to Nora, 3, and Lucas, 22 months — said during their joint interview on the May 28 episode of The Viall Files podcast. “Jen — like, six months after she gave birth — she got pregnant again.”
“I got tricked into it,” the 28-year-old added. “She took out her IUD without telling me.”
I gasped. Nick looked mildly horrified. Jen? The 25-year-old just shrugged and said, “Whoopsies.” (Yes, she is 25 with baby number three, and I am 28 and a cat-less spinster.)
I’m guessing that IUD never made its way back in since baby number three was another “surprise.”
“While it was a surprise, we both had a feeling there was another baby waiting for us,” the #MomTok influencer told People in February. “We were very excited. There were a lot of emotions after a crazy year.”
It was especially surprising considering the couple nearly separated. Jen had even moved out and told Zac she was “in a place where I want to walk away from the relationship” and “not opposed to divorce.”
Yeah… I’m gonna stick with my IUD, thanks.
Wait, Mormons Have IUDS?
Okay, I might sound HELLA STUPID here, but what threw me even more than Jen yeeting her own IUD (kidding—ouch) was the fact that she had one in the first place. Jen, who puts herself firmly in the Saint category of the cast, proudly wears her sacred undergarments (which, like… where do they fit under those??). Girlie not only had birth control but an IUD? That’s like the Pokémon evolution of The Pill.
Turns out, birth control isn’t banned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Mormons can use condoms, implants, hormonal pills, and, yes — even IUDs. This is a huge contrast to some other religions like Roman Catholicism and Islam.
So, to recap: Mormons should avoid coffee, tea, alcohol, tobacco, and illegal drugs — but ketamine therapy? Sure. Gallons of soda? Yep. Botox? Go for it. Protected sex? Absolutely.
Back in the day, LDS Church leaders condemned birth control as sinful, but nowadays, they’re pretty chill. The official stance is that the decision about contraception should be between husband, wife, and God. But, as evidenced by the 22 BABIES ON THE CAST, they still very much encourage removing the IUD and breaking out the stroller.
Honestly? This surprisingly modern approach to contraception might be my favorite thing I’ve learned about Mormonism from the show.
Zac Says He Was Looking For Someone “Spicy” When He Swiped On Jen
Another fun (read: slightly alarming) moment from the interview: Zac revealed he was looking for someone “spicy” when he met Jen. A single tear slid down my cheek.
Fresh off his mission in the Dominican Republic and clearly feelin’ himself, Zac downloaded Mutual — a Mormon version of Tinder — and started swiping.
“I kind of got the Latina fever and was looking for someone spicy like Jen,” Zac laughed.
Jen, whose mom is from Ecuador, has opened up on the show about how her heritage and lower-income background sometimes make her feel out of place among other church members and with her in-laws. But hey — she checked the “spicy” box, so Zac was sold.
“I was the first person that showed up on her app,” Zac said. Jen liked his profile, he messaged her, and… she ignored him. Multiple times. “But I was like, this girl’s super pretty. I’m going to shoot my shot again.”
Okay, this is starting to explain a lot about his energy.
Zac was about to move to Hawaii, which made Jen hesitate — fair since that definitely screams, “This is a hookup.” She eventually agreed to meet the night before he left.
“We went and we talked and, this sounds like cheesy or corny to say, [but] it literally was the most significant night of my life,” Zac said. “And I went home that night, and I told my mom, ‘I just met my future wife.’ And she’s like, ‘You’re sleep-deprived. You’re crazy. You’re moving to Hawaii. You don’t know what you’re talking about.’”
Eight months later, they were engaged. Ten months later, they got married.
I gotta do some thinking.
