Latest news with #Gwyneth Paltrow
News.com.au
28-07-2025
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
‘No one would even look at me': What really happened on Shallow Hal set according to explosive Gwyneth Paltrow book
New details about Gwyneth Paltrow's controversial role wearing a fat suit for Shallow Hal and crew accounts of her behavior on set are revealed in a bombshell new book about the star. Below is an edited extract from the upcoming book Gwyneth by Amy Odell. EXTRACT: A macrobiotic diet and so-called clean eating were among the first health fads that seemed to stick to Gwyneth Paltrow and her evolving persona. 'That was the beginning of people thinking I was a crackpot. Like, What do you mean food can affect your health, you f***ing psycho?' she later said. By the time she was doing interviews to promote Shallow Hal, she was espousing the kinds of health theories that would define her next career. The media generally quoted her without any fact-checking: 'I used to drink vodka tonics all the time … but I found that my kidneys got really hard because of it, and I noticed that my liver wouldn't drop down in my yoga back bends.' ('I don't think you could say there's some physiological explanation for what she's talking about,' said infectious disease expert Dr. Amesh Adalja.) Gwyneth's Ashtanga yoga routine involved getting up at 4am six days a week for an hour and forty-five minutes of practice. 'I never skip it unless I'm ill,' she said. She'd bring two yoga instructors with her on location shoots. While all of this was going on, she was spending her working hours in a fat suit. By the time Gwyneth showed up on the set of the Farrelly brothers' Shallow Hal in 2000 with her strange diet requests and intensive workout schedule, she was ready to cultivate the irreverent side of her personality, the fun-loving mischief maker. But the people around her were still seeing elitist Gwyneth. Before filming began, 120-pound Gwyneth slipped into a rubbery, twenty-five-pound fat suit. It came in six pieces — one that zipped over her torso, one that slipped over her legs like shorts, two calf pieces, and two gloves — plus a face that was essentially glued to hers, and was meant to make her look like she weighed 350 pounds. She planned to walk around downtown Charlotte, North Carolina (where the movie was filming) without an entourage or full camera crew, to experience what her high school yearbook had called her 'worst fear' — obesity. None of the pedestrians knew that a major movie was in their midst. They mostly ignored her, or skirted around her body like an obstacle dropped in their path. Barry Teague, a line producer, had been instructed to stay close, but to keep enough of a distance so that she felt like she was alone. Teague, who weighed 325 pounds himself, felt pained as he watched the scene play out before him. She moved more slowly than everyone else and blocked most of the width of the sidewalk. Pedestrians couldn't step off the curb to pass by because cars were parked, so they had to squeeze around her single file on the other side. Teague watched two attractive, middle-aged men hurry around her like she was a trash can, without saying 'excuse me' or regarding her at all. A pair of teenage girls gawked as she passed, then giggled to each other as she walked away. She did the walk a few times. Teague watched her stop at a hot dog stand and noticed how impatient the crowd behind her got, seemingly for no other reason than her being fat. After twenty minutes of walking around town this time, she called it quits. The exercise seemed too distressing for her to finish. Teague said, 'It was difficult to watch.' Before Gwyneth got to Charlotte, she had done a test run in New York. The crew dressed her in the fat suit in a room at the Tribeca Grand hotel and sent her to the bar to see if anyone could recognize her. 'No one would even look at me,' she recalled. 'If I was walking by a table, you know how naturally you just glance up. 'But people would see that I was heavy in their peripheral vision and not look, because I think they assume that's the polite thing to do. It was incredibly isolating and really lonely and sad … I didn't expect it to feel so upsetting,' she said. 'I thought the whole thing would be funny, and then as soon as I put it on, I thought, well, you know, this isn't all funny.' Gwyneth had a sign made for her trailer that read 'Kate,' seemingly as a decoy, even though the only people coming near it were crew who knew she was inside. She wasn't chummy. She didn't rush to make conversation, and she let her attention drift if the topic did not interest her. She seemed out of her element. 'Sometimes she felt like she was maybe more talented or more in-demand than other people, and you could see that,' said Teague. 'You could hear her eyes rolling sometimes.' When she finished a scene with an actor she didn't like who had a bit part in the film, she walked away poking a finger in her mouth, miming throwing up. During some scenes, Gwyneth wore a short skirt but chose not to wear anything underneath. One of the camera operators went over to her dresser, Cookie Lopez. 'Cookie, she's flashing us. You might want to tell her to sit differently.' Lopez looked at him and said, 'There's nothing I can do.' He said, 'You don't want to tell her so she can change what she's doing?' Lopez replied, 'If she likes doing that, I can't get her to stop.' Another day, the crew watched her riding around set on one of the electric scooters they used to get around, wearing only the bikini that was her costume for an upcoming scene. Though she never liked her legs, she struck one crew member as 'very, very comfortable in her own skin.' Compared to other Farrelly brothers film stars, Gwyneth was remote. ReneÌ�e Zellweger joined the Me, Myself & Irene cast and crew at a skating party. Jim Carrey, who starred in Me, Myself & Irene and Dumb and Dumber, threw the Irene crew a dance party on a boat. Gwyneth ordered an ice cream cart for the set and had her assistant push it around saying, 'It's from Gwyneth, it's from Gwyneth.' The crew was surprised — not that the gesture was comparatively small but that Gwyneth had done anything at all. When a technician died suddenly during filming, cast and crew contributed to a fund for his widow and children. The person in charge of collecting the money was telling colleagues one day how much they had amassed; Gwyneth overheard and asked them what they were talking about. One crew member signaled another not to tell her, sensing that Gwyneth wasn't someone who should be requested to donate. Later, someone overheard Luke Wilson, who had visited the set, tell her, 'The world doesn't revolve around you.' Even by the relatively permissive standards of 2002, Shallow Hal generated controversy for using fatness as a punch line. Gwyneth told friends and some of the crew that she felt like the film could bring attention to what would later be widely termed fat-shaming, which she experienced for the first time in her life in the fat suit. But that's not exactly where the discourse landed. 'If you're overweight and you see this movie, you're going to be disturbed. To be honest, I was uncomfortable throughout the whole movie,' singer and talk show host Carnie Wilson told USA Today. 'It made me feel like I was a big joke, and that crushes my heart.' Advocacy groups agreed. 'It's making horrible fun of fat people, and that is still acceptable in our culture,' said Miriam Berg, president of the nonprofit group Council on Size & Weight Discrimination. 'Would it be acceptable to make the same kind of joke about a person in a wheelchair or a person of colour? No.' Sandie Sabo, spokeswoman for the five-thousand-member National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance, told The New York Times, 'If Gwyneth Paltrow had decided to make a movie about the African American experience, and she portrayed herself in blackface makeup, and yet her quote-unquote inner beauty was perceived as white, I don't think people would put up with that … Maybe that will help people understand.' Despite the backlash, the film fared fairly well in reviews and opened third at the box office, with first-weekend ticket sales of US$23.3 million. It would go on to gross $141 million worldwide on a US$40 million budget. Gwyneth did her best to respond to the controversy, but her well-intentioned innocence sometimes floundered on the spot. Matt Lauer asked her on the US Today show if the film made fun of fat people. 'No. I wouldn't have done it if that was the intention. You know, and I, I was concerned, I thought, 'Well is this going to be — is this going to be making fun of, of heavier people?' 'But it really doesn't. I mean — and actually the film is really — it ends up being a love letter to, to people who are overweight. 'It's like finally a film for people who are overweight, and, and,and it's — it's really a love letter,'she said. In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, she said, 'I got a real sense of what it would be like to be that overweight, and every pretty girl should be forced to do that.' Gwyneth had never seen the movie as mocking fat people and was disappointed that it hadn't ended up being her Charlie's Angels, though it was commercially successful. (Angels earned around $120 million more on the same budget.) But the backlash didn't seem to bother her all that much. She simply moved on to her next project.
Washington Post
26-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Washington Post
Gwyneth Paltrow is Astronomer's ‘temporary spokesperson' in new video
There's a lot of buzz around Astronomer, the data infrastructure company that skyrocketed into public attention after its executives — now former executives — gave us the viral Coldplay 'kiss cam' moment. With all this recent popularity, the business brought on some extra help, hiring a 'temporary spokesperson' with experience in Coldplay internet fame: Gwyneth Paltrow. 'I've been hired on a very temporary basis to speak on behalf of the 300+ employees at Astronomer,' the actress said in the minute-long video posted to social media Friday. 'Astronomer has gotten a lot of questions over the last few days, and they wanted me to answer the most common ones.' The Goop chief executive happens to be the ex-wife of Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin and co-author of the original 'break-the-internet' breakup statement when the pair announced their 'conscious uncoupling' in 2014. If you're searching for answers to the company's real frequently-asked questions, you won't find them in the tongue-in-cheek clip. The questions 'OMG! What the actual f' and 'How is your social media team holding' get comically cut off by Paltrow as she explained the much less juicy details of Astronomer's business. 'We've been thrilled so many people have a newfound interest in data workflow automation,' Paltrow said. Astronomer's chief executive Andy Byron and human resources chief Kristin Cabot both resigned after they were filmed cuddling at a Coldplay concert in Boston earlier this month. They appeared on the arena video board in a 'kiss cam' segment before looking uncomfortable, with Cabot turning around and Byron ducking out of sight as Martin quipped from the stage that the two might be having an affair. Mark Borkowski, a British public relations and crisis consultant, described using Paltrow to front a video parodying the incident as 'utter genius' that shows the company has a sense of humor. 'It's a savvy use of media to create a viral moment,' he told The Washington Post in a phone interview Saturday. 'In a way you're laughing with everybody else.' Astronomer choosing Paltrow will not go unnoticed, Borkowski said. 'Astronomer is a meme now. Owning the ridiculous nature of how it became a meme is far better than apologizing for it.' A representative for Paltrow didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. As for how he advises clients caught in such situations, Borkowski said acting in a dignified way and 'using as few words as possible' is always the best approach. Paltrow's cameo is reminiscent of the scared Peloton wife discourse from 2019. After actress Monica Ruiz's worry-stricken expression in a Peloton holiday commercial became the butt of internet jokes, she laughed it off, later using her horrified face for an Aviation Gin ad. 'We will now be returning to what we do best: delivering game-changing results for our customers,' Paltrow closed out the ad. 'Thank you for your interest in Astronomer.' Tatum Hunter contributed to this report.
Daily Mail
20-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Gwyneth Paltrow was taught X-rated move from A-lister's wife as a teen, bombshell tell-all claims
Forget health class, Gwyneth Paltrow got an unforgettable lesson in the birds and the bees from the future wife of a Hollywood heartthrob, according to a juicy new biography. In the tell-all Gwyneth: A Biography by Amy Odell, it's alleged that the now 52-year-old actress and wellness mogul got an unexpected education in sex during a visit to one of her mom's TV sets. Odell claims that while the Oscar winner was in 10th grade, she tagged along to Florida, where her mother Blythe Danner was filming the 1990 movie Judgment. There, young Gwyneth reportedly struck up a friendship with a then up-and-coming makeup artist — Sheryl Berkoff — who would later go on to marry none other than Rob Lowe. Paltrow admitted as much on Lowe's Literally! podcast in July 2020. 'First of all, she was dating Keanu Reeves, who was my celebrity crush. And she was so cool,' the Shakespeare in Love actress said. 'She knew that I was sneaking cigarettes, and she would come smoke with me behind the trailer. And, she taught me how to give a blow job, and you know, all the classic Sheryl stuff,' she told the actor. 'And I just worshipped her. I thought she was literally the coolest chick of all time. And she was so awesome to me!' Paltrow gushed. The actress would later live with Lowe and Berkoff when she first moved to Los Angeles after dropping out of college to pursue acting. The teen's own charisma drew many of her fellow classmates to her at the Spence, the private girls school she attended. An excerpt of the book given to US Weekly, claims 'She established herself as an interesting person — someone people wanted to hang out with,' recalled the head of the middle school at the time, Kate Turley. 'It was easy for her to make her way. But other students seemed to feel threatened.' Odell said, 'One classmate recalled, 'Not one person had a doubt that she was going to be famous.' After all, she might spend a weekend with someone like [her godfather] Steven Spielberg. But she was also polarizing.' One of those polarizing incidents was apparently when Paltrow, who had inherited her father Bruce Paltrow's bawdy sense of humor, allegedly drew some X-rated art in the school library. 'One day, Spence's rather humorless librarian approached [head of school and Gwyneth's advisor James] Dawson, outraged that a student had drawn, on the partition of a study cubicle, an erect penis. She sent all four girls — Gwyneth among them — who had been in the library at the time to Dawson,' Odell wrote. 'Dawson made an ominous threat: 'All right, folks, this is completely uncalled for and obnoxious, so I'm going to suspend you all and put it on your college record.' 'I didn't do it,' said one girl, who left. The second girl said she didn't have anything to do with it either.' 'Down to the third girl and Gwyneth, Dawson doubled down on his ultimatum, prompting the other girl to insist she wasn't responsible and leave.' Paltrow lived with Lowe and Berkoff for a while when she first moved to Los Angeles and has remained close to the couple; Pictured in Los Angeles in December 2015 'Dawson now faced just Gwyneth. 'Gwyneth, you drew the erect penis in the library,' he said. 'I'm not really sure what you're talking about,' she said. He presented a picture the library had given him of the masterpiece. 'Oh, that penis,' Gwyneth said. 'I wasn't sure what we were talking about.'' 'Dawson pointed out that the other students had had to suffer through the confrontation with her. 'Come on, where's your sense of humor?' He often found her amusing, but replied, 'In the library, are you kidding me?' Gwyneth became annoyed when she had to clean it up.'
Daily Mail
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Gwyneth Paltrow wears favorite $200 swimsuit after ditching strict diet in sneak peek of her luxury summer trip
Gwyneth Paltrow paired an old Celine fedora with her favorite $200 Left on Friday 'Sunday Suit' for a selfie showcasing her lavish summer vacation for the viewing pleasure of her captive, combined 12.3M Instagram/Facebook following. The 52-year-old Goop CEO-founder was photographed wearing the exact same black one-piece swimsuit while relaxing aboard a yacht off the coast of Capri on June 5 with her second husband Brad Falchuk and celeb pal Edward Norton. Basic Instinct alum Sharon Stone commented on Gwyneth's Instagram slideshow with a pointing emoji, a sunflower emoji, and a fist bump emoji. Paltrow previously called the 67-year-old Oscar nominee 'the legend' after sitting next to her at Max Mara's Resort 2026 runway presentation, which was held June 17 at Caserta Royal Palace in Italy. On June 23, the Oscar-winning actress revealed she 'recently discovered' fat-burning, muscle-building EMSculpt Neo treatments, which she gushed was an 'incredible, non-invasive treatment that has genuinely made a difference' to her slim 5ft9in figure amid perimenopause. Gwyneth previously confessed on the April 22nd episode of her Goop podcast that she was 'a little bit sick of' her strict Paleo diet and was 'getting back into eating sourdough bread, cheese – there, I said it. A little pasta.' Gwyneth Paltrow paired an old Celine fedora with her favorite $200 Left on Friday 'Sunday Suit' for a selfie showcasing her lavish summer vacation 'Gwyneth doesn't take herself as seriously anymore and has let go of chasing perfection,' a source told 'She's confident in who she is and is enjoying the success she's worked hard for.' On Thursday, Paltrow gave fans a glimpse at her seaside holiday, but mostly detailed precisely what she wore each day. In one snap, the empty nester held hands with her 21-year-old daughter Apple Martin, who's been acting in plays when she's not studying law, history, and society at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN. Gwyneth and Coldplay frontman Chris Martin also welcomed 19-year-old son Moses Martin during their decade-long marriage, which they 'consciously uncoupled' from in 2013. Moses fronts the band Dancer Dancer Dancer Dancer, soon embarking on a 14-date tour, when he's not busy with his freshman studies at Brown University in Providence, RI. September 29 will mark Paltrow's seventh wedding anniversary with second husband Brad Falchuk, whom she originally met on the set of Fox series Glee back in 2010. The Emmy winner originally launched Goop in 2008 as a weekly e-mail newsletter providing new age advice before expanding the brand into e-commerce, a wellness summit, a print magazine, a podcast, and a Netflix docuseries. Last year, Gwyneth wrapped her comeback role as Timothée Chalamet's much older love interest in Josh Safdie's solo feature directorial debut Marty Supreme, which hits US theaters December 25. The 52-year-old Goop CEO-founder was photographed wearing the exact same black one-piece swimsuit while relaxing aboard a yacht off the coast of Capri on June 5 with her second husband Brad Falchuk and celeb pal Edward Norton Basic Instinct alum Sharon Stone commented on Gwyneth's Instagram slideshow with a pointing emoji, a sunflower emoji, and a fist bump emoji Paltrow previously called the 67-year-old Oscar nominee (3-L) 'the legend' after sitting next to her at Max Mara's Resort 2026 runway presentation, which was held June 17 at Caserta Royal Palace in Italy On June 23, the Oscar-winning actress revealed she 'recently discovered' fat-burning, muscle-building EMSculpt Neo treatments, which she gushed was an 'incredible, non-invasive treatment that has genuinely made a difference' to her slim 5ft9in figure amid perimenopause Gwyneth previously confessed on the April 22nd episode of her Goop podcast that she was 'a little bit sick of' her strict Paleo diet and was 'getting back into eating sourdough bread, cheese – there, I said it. A little pasta' (pictured June 14) A source told 'Gwyneth doesn't take herself as seriously anymore and has let go of chasing perfection. She's confident in who she is and is enjoying the success she's worked hard for' On Thursday, Paltrow gave fans a glimpse at her seaside holiday, but mostly detailed precisely what she wore each day In one snap, the empty nester held hands with her 21-year-old daughter Apple Martin (L), who's been acting in plays when she's not studying law, history, and society at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN Last year, Gwyneth wrapped her comeback role as Timothée Chalamet's (R, pictured October 16) much older love interest in Josh Safdie's solo feature directorial debut Marty Supreme, which hits US theaters December 25 A24's $70M-budget ping pong drama also stars Tyler the Creator, Fran Drescher, Penn Jillette, Abel Ferrera, and Sandra Bernhard. Paltrow will also have a cameo in Rachel Israel's indie comedy Miracle on 74th Street alongside Drew Barrymore, Jill Kargman, Justin Bartha, David Krumholtz, Christine Taylor, and Jason Biggs. The LA-born nepo baby certainly had a leg up in the industry thanks to her actress mother Blythe Danner, showrunner father Bruce Paltrow, and filmmaker godfather Steven Spielberg.
