Jennifer Lopez: 'Gigli flop wasn't a big deal'

Jennifer Lopez didn't let the failure of her 2003 movie Gigli get her down, because she knew she'd bounce back from the critical backlash.

The actress/singer and her then-partner Ben Affleck teamed up for the poorly-received film, which has become a punchline for flops, and while many critics felt sure the project would end her career, J.Lo knew it was little more than a bump in the road.

In a candid new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Jennifer admits her positive outlook has always helped steer her back to success when thinks looked a little bleak for her career.

Reminded of the Gigli reviews, she told the publication, "I never thought of it as, 'Oh, this is terrible! My career's over!' I just never thought that. I just knew that that movie didn't work and that's all it was."

Lopez has the same outlook when it comes to her personal life, admitting she doesn't dwell on her three failed marriages or her broken engagement to Affleck.

"(I'm like), 'That relationship didn't work and that's all it was'," she added. "It wasn't going to end me, personally or professionally.

"Even later on, after I got married and had kids, and it was a slow time for me work-wise - I pulled back and I was working on my marriage and I was being a mom and all that - I didn't feel like, 'Oh, what is my life? Who am I right now? Am I still that entertainer?'

"I realised, 'Yeah, you're gonna be even better than you were before. Watch'. Those are the kind of talks that I had with myself."

Now she's back on top thanks in part to a career revival as a judge on American Idol, J.Lo admits the only thing that puts a spoiler on her success is fame.

"As I get older it bothers me more," she said. "When you're young it's like a shock at first, and you kind of have anxiety about it, but then you get used to that life and it just becomes your normal life. And now? I think when I had kids and stuff... I wanted a little more freedom to go outside and not have them have to deal with that part of it."