Gwyneth Paltrow just found out she was in Spider-Man: Homecoming


Remember when Gwyneth Paltrow made her triumphant return as Pepper Potts in Spider-Man: Homecoming, a movie that hit theaters less than two years ago? Because she certainly doesn't.
Paltrow appeared as Pepper in a memorable scene from the 2017 Spider-Man film, a fact her co-star, Jon Favreau, casually mentioned on an episode of Netflix's The Chef Show. But Paltrow was totally taken aback by the mere suggestion that she has ever been in a Spider-Man movie in her life, as flagged by Decider.
"We were in Spider-Man together," Favreau said. Paltrow immediately insisted, "We weren't in Spider-Man."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
After thinking it over, Paltrow doubled down on her belief that she wasn't in the movie at all. When reminded of the scene, it appears this was literally the first time she realized it was shot for a Spider-Man film and not an Avengers movie, expressing genuine astonishment as she asked, "That was Spider-Man?" Paltrow had, evidently, been for all this time unaware she was in a movie that Decider points out she got fourth billing on.
This wouldn't be the first time Paltrow got tripped up about what Marvel scenes she filmed for what movie. Famously, she accidentally gave away a major Avengers: Endgame spoiler a year in advance, casually referencing the fact that Pepper Potts and Tony Stark have a child together in an interview for Avengers: Infinity War. That wouldn't happen until the next film, but presumably, she mistakenly believed the Morgan Stark scenes were for Infinity War.
Paltrow has suggested she's retiring as Pepper Potts after Avengers: Endgame — although for all we know, she actually does appear in next month's Spider-Man: Far From Home, a fact she'll learn two years after we do. Brendan Morrow
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.
-
Nepal chooses toddler as its new ‘living goddess’
Under the Radar Girls between two and four are typically chosen to live inside the temple as the Kumari – until puberty strikes
-
October 5 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Sunday's political cartoons include half-truth hucksters, Capitol lockdown, and more
-
Jaguar Land Rover’s cyber bailout
Talking Point Should the government do more to protect business from the ‘cyber shockwave’?
-
Primatologist Jane Goodall dies at 91
Speed Read She rose to fame following her groundbreaking field research with chimpanzees
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclub
Speed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's ills
Speed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, Stallone
Speed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees
-
White House seeks to bend Smithsonian to Trump's view
Speed Read The Smithsonian Institution's 21 museums are under review to ensure their content aligns with the president's interpretation of American history
-
Charlamagne Tha God irks Trump with Epstein talk
Speed Read The radio host said the Jeffrey Epstein scandal could help 'traditional conservatives' take back the Republican Party
-
CBS cancels Colbert's 'Late Show'
Speed Read 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' is ending next year
-
Shakespeare not an absent spouse, study proposes
speed read A letter fragment suggests that the Shakespeares lived together all along, says scholar Matthew Steggle