Could Zac Affleck‘s medical school journey be the most confusing part of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives? You tell Us.
The hit Hulu series, which first premiered in September 2024, introduced Zac, 28, through his marriage to Jen Affleck. While Jen, 25, was juggling being a mom of two with a growing TikTok career, Zac was preparing for medical school.
Before applying for medical school, Zac was raised in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and participated in the church’s missionary program in the Dominican Republic. He got his undergrad degree from Brigham Young University before pursuing further education.
“Zac graduated and got accepted into medical school!???? It’s been a long and challenging journey with two little ones, but we did it!” Jen wrote via Instagram in July 2024. “I couldn’t be prouder of you and all the hard work you’ve put in. Excited for this new adventure that awaits! ????.”
Initially, Jen and Zac discussed making the move to New York so he could follow in his father and grandfather’s footsteps, who were both surgeons.
“We also just found out that Zac got into medical school in New York, which was one of his top dream schools to get into. Medical schools are super hard on marriages, so it makes me question if going to medical school is worth it,” Jen said in season 1. “It’s hard because I am the provider, and if we are going to do medical school and these hard things in life, we do need to be on the same page, especially if we end up moving to New York, where I wouldn’t even have the MomTok group.”
The couple documented their time in New York, but by the time season 2 of Mormon Wives aired in April, Zac was now going to medical school in Arizona.
“Our guest of honor is Jen Affleck, who is a prominent member amongst these influencers,” Lisa Vanderpump explained to her staff when Jen made an appearance on Vanderpump Villa. “Jen is reluctantly moving to Arizona with her husband so he can attend medical school.”
Jessi Ngatikaura later elaborated on Jen’s move from Utah. “It is for her husband’s medical school and he will never be around so who needs a husband?” Jessi quipped. “[After five years] is when [marriages] expire. I am coming up on mine so we better be careful.”
One month later, The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives returned with the revelation that Jen and Zac were separated. The pair, who got married in 2019, were figuring out their next steps — which included Zac taking a break from medical school.
“I reached out to my dean and put in my application to leave medical school. My feelings toward MomTok haven’t completely changed but I feel like a lot of our marriage I made about me and what I want to do,” he told Jen in a May episode. “I don’t know what I am going to do with my life, to be honest. I am here to support you and support your career.”
Secret Lives of Mormon Wives viewers became quite familiar with Jen and Zac’s ups and downs after the show premiered. The couple, who share kids Nora, 2, and Luca, 20 months, are currently expecting baby No. 3, after nearly calling it quits.
“[We went through] lots of therapy. When I say lots of therapy, I mean eight hours a week. We really went all at it,” Jen told Us in May about ketamine therapy. “It was definitely a game changer. Definitely life changing — and I never thought I would try ketamine. But when you’re looking for anything to help you try anything.”
Jen added: “We wouldn’t have been able to get through season 2 — honestly season 1 or season 2 — without therapy. And filming definitely isn’t a comfortable thing for Zac. I think it’s definitely harder for him to be vulnerable. So that was him really trying to break through that during season 2. Even though there’s a lot of tough conversations we need to have on and off camera, it was all helpful in the end.”
The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives is currently streaming on Hulu.
