AfterBen Affleckwas spotted on Thursday having dinner with 22-year-oldPlayboymodel Shauna Sexton, rumors began swirling about the status of Affleck’s relationship with Shookus. A source previously told PEOPLE that Affleck and Sexton’s outing “looked like maybe a first date” and that “she looked very cute, and he seemed interested.”
TheSaturday Night Liveproducer was also missing from the actor’s 46thbirthday celebrationthe previous evening.
Adding fuel to the fire, it was revealed this week that Shookus had deleted her Instagram account. Though it was active in recent weeks, thehandle now directs to a pagethat says, “Sorry, this page isn’t available.The link you followed may be broken, or the page may have been removed.”Page Sixwas the first to report on the development.
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Shookus, 38, has previously spoken about how important it can be totake “a break”and focus on “self-love.”
“I’ve put a lot of time in the past two years into just making myself better internally,” she said during an interview withElleearlier this year.
“Self-love means something. I thought it was all a joke for a long time. It’s really important. Giving yourself a break is really important,” she added.
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Affleck and Shookus, who had been dating for over a year, werelast seen together in late Julyduring a mall outing in Puerto Rico, where theJustice Leagueactor was shooting an upcoming Netflix filmThe Last Thing He Wanted.
A source told PEOPLE that the pair appeared “happily in love” during their outing.
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Affleck’s latest outing also comes after a friend close to the actor told PEOPLE that he has been in ahappy, health-focused place as of late.
“Ben is doing well,” the Affleck pal said earlier this month. “He is in a good place mentally and has worked really hard to get here. He continues to focus on himself and the health of his relationships.”
The friend added, “He attends meetings, many meetings, and he also does meditation and yoga. While he still has his moments — and let’s be honest everyone struggles — he continues to work hard on himself.”
Meanwhile, PEOPLE previously reported Buffalo native Shookus had been staying at Affleck’s $19 million mansion on and off, as well as her own place in L.A. for the summer.
source: people.com
