Ben Affleck shows back tattoo during outing in Hawaii

March 19 (UPI) -- Ben Affleck showed his much-discussed back tattoo during a recent outing in Hawaii.

The 45-year-old actor displayed his large phoenix tattoo on the beach Thursday after previously claiming the ink was "fake for a movie."

Affleck was spotted shirtless as he worked on his new film Triple Frontier, according to Entertainment Tonight. The colorful tattoo covers the majority of the star's back.

E! News reported Affleck was training with Triple Frontier co-stars Charlie Hunnam, Garret Hedlund and Oscar Isaac. Fans took to social media after seeing what seems like confirmation the tattoo is real.

"I knew it! That stupid back tattoo is real on Ben Affleck. What the hell was he thinking!!!" one person tweeted.

"I've been following the Ben Affleck back tattoo drama more closely than the Mueller investigation," another added.

The Batman actor had said the tattoo was fake in an interview with Extra in March 2016. He spoke out after his ex-girlfriend Jennifer Lopez called the tattoo "awful" on an episode of Watch What Happens Live.

"I would tell him, 'What are you doing?'" the singer and actress said. "It has too many colors. His tattoos always have too many colors. They shouldn't be so colorful. They should be cooler, I don't know."

Triple Frontier will premiere on Netflix, but has yet to announce a release date.