One of the greatest Marvel hits that set them on the map was supposed to be an indie film. MCU began its superhero saga with the iconic Iron Man in 2008, casting Robert Downey Jr. in his controversial era, director and actor Jon Favreau, and MCU star Gwyneth Paltrow. They hadn’t seen the future, they did not know that it was a billion-dollar franchise in the making. Regardless, Paltrow candidly recalled her experience filming Iron Man, at the Red Sea International Festival.
Starring as Pepper Potts, Iron Man’s long-time lover, Paltrow shared a deep insight into Marvel’s approach to the 2008 superhero epic at that time. Moreover, the actress claimed to have been interested in doing the film only because it wasn’t expected to be a basic superhero movie.
Gwyneth Paltrow recollects MCU before its reign
Simply put, the 51-year-old actress and businesswoman didn’t know what she was getting into. While speaking to Rolling Stone at the Red Sea International Festival, Gwyneth Paltrow opened up about her co-actors, Robert Downey Jr. and Jon Favreau. Ironically, the actress also hinted at her disinterest in superhero movies. Paltrow disclosed,
“The first film we did was very different from the rest because the studio didn’t think it was going to be a big hit. They hired Jon Favreau to direct, who was great. And they hired Robert Downey Jr., who was un-hireable at the time. His career was at a very low point.”
With a $585 million box-office success incoming, Iron Man was not expected to make such a big smash. More so, the lead actor, Robert Downey Jr. was spiraling in his acting career, given his addiction and controversies. Speaking of Paltrow’s interest, the movie was pitched to her as an indie film that would not revolve around a standard superhero plot.
Gwyneth Paltrow stopped watching Marvel movies
Paltrow reprised her character as Pepper Potts in all three installments of Iron Man, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame, as well as Spider-Man: Homecoming. Yet, the Academy Award winner admitted that she stopped watching her own MCU movies, let alone other releases from the franchise. Paltrow said,
“I’ve never seen Endgame. I’ve never seen any of these. I can’t keep track. I probably should at some point.”
Quite surprisingly, the notable actress and MCU veteran revealed that she wasn’t even aware of her feature in Spider-Man: Homecoming, per the first episode of The Chef Show, in 2019. Her revelation left fans and the media in utter disbelief but also insinuated her lack of interest in the superhero genre. Although, we couldn’t see any compromise in her acting.
Owner of the skincare brand, Goop, Paltrow has little plans of returning to the screen, but would not miss an opportunity to. She told Entertainment Tonight that a call from RDJ shall do the work. But besides that, she remains engrossed with her business. Regardless of all the surprises, it all seemed to have worked out for the better.
