Gwyneth Paltrow is widely celebrated for her decorated filmography, with an Academy Award for Shakespeare in Love and standout roles in The Talented Mr. Ripley and The Royal Tenenbaums. However, the actress has been refreshingly honest about the fact that not every project in her career was a masterpiece.
In a candid reflection on her past work, she revealed that she categorizes her movies into two distinct piles: those that were heartfelt labors of love and those she referred to as her s**t films.
During an interview with The Guardian, Paltrow explained that the second category was largely populated by projects she took on simply to pay the bills. She specifically pointed to the 2003 comedy View from the Top, in which she played an aspiring flight attendant, admitting that disgraced mogul Harvey Weinstein essentially talked [her] into doing the movie.
Another notable entry in her "skip" list is the Farrelly brothers’ Shallow Hal, where she played Rosemary, a woman whose inner beauty is the only thing the protagonist can see. For an actress who reached the pinnacle of critical acclaim so early, these commercial comedies felt like a deviation from her creative identity.
Paltrow noted that her pivot toward becoming the face of major brands like Estée Lauder was actually a strategic move to avoid these types of roles. She shared that she basically stopped making money from acting in 2002 because she decided to only pursue projects she truly cared about, regardless of the paycheck.
As of February, Paltrow has officially broken her seven-year hiatus from the big screen with a role that fits her "discerning" new criteria. She is currently starring in the A24 sports drama Marty Supreme, which premiered on Christmas Day 2025 and has become a massive critical and commercial hit.
In the film, she plays Kay Stone, a wealthy socialite who enters a complex relationship with a young table tennis champion played by Timothée Chalamet. The movie has been a major success during the 2026 awards circuit, securing nine Academy Award nominations and earning Chalamet a Golden Globe.
Paltrow’s performance has been hailed as a return to form, with critics praising the raw, subtle yet energetic nature of her portrayal. She admitted in recent interviews that she didn’t even know who Josh Safdie or Timothée Chalamet were before the project, but the script finally offered her a reason to leave her "empty nest" and return to a movie set.
Aside from her acting comeback, Paltrow remains the powerhouse CEO of her lifestyle brand, Goop. She is scheduled to be the headline keynote speaker at the Meltwater Summit late this year, where she will discuss brand evolution and cultural trends.
While she has hinted at an eventual plan to sell her company and literally disappear from public life by her 55th birthday in 2027, her recent success in cinema suggests she might still have a few more "labors of love" left in her.
Do you think Gwyneth Paltrow is right to be so critical of her early 2000s comedies, or do you still have a soft spot for movies like Shallow Hal despite her disapproval? Share your thoughts in the comments.
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