June 4, 2004 — DIRECTOR Kevin Smith had some fun at the expense of his pal Ben Affleck for failing to show up at the London premiere of “Jersey Girl” the other night.

The flick, in which Affleck stars opposite his ex Jennifer Lopez, was a critical and commercial flop, but reps for Affleck say his failure to show up was due to a bout of bronchitis. Yet Liv Tyler and J.Lo were no-shows as well.

“There’s no Ben, no Liv, no Jen here tonight,” Smith told the audience before the screening at the Curzon Mayfair theater, reports London’s Evening Standard. “Only me and I’m not in it.

“Ben can’t be here tonight because he has bronchitis. He originally thought it was meningitis, but it wasn’t — damn. Maybe we should call him Bronchifer.”

Smith — who also directed Affleck in “Chasing Amy,” “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back,” “Dogma” and “Mall Rats” — sarcastically noted, “Ben came over here to promote [box-office bomb] ‘Paycheck’ and that certainly did well.”

Smith also took issue with those who’ve said that his latest effort is a “disaster” — ” ‘Jersey Girl’ is not a disaster,” he said. “It cost $35 million and made $25 million. That’s lower than expectations, not a disaster. A disaster is ‘Gigli.’ ”

As for Affleck’s future, Smith told a PAGE SIX spy, “I preferred making films like ‘Clerks’ because I didn’t have to deal with the fallout of Hollywood power relationships. I’d work with Ben again but he’s had a rough year, so I think he’s going to take some time out from the business.”

While the star’s professional life has seen better days, his personal life is said to be on the upswing. Another tab across the pond, the Mirror, says he’s getting serious with a new gal pal, TV account executive Enza Sambataro, 26. [The first photo of the couple appears on the facing page.]

Affleck reportedly met the brunette at a fund-raising event in a Boston bowling alley and was immediately smitten. He soon asked her to go to Italy or Mexico for a romantic weekend, but she made him meet her mother first.

“She had to go to New Hampshire to spend a weekend with her family, so he asked if he could come along,” said a source.

Friends of Sambataro, who speaks three languages, describe her as “bright, athletic and very personable.”