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Gwyneth Paltrow was shocked to learn that she had appeared in seven Marvel Studios films. Despite playing Pepper Potts, the beloved assistant-turned-love-interest of Tony Stark, she didn’t realize just how many times she had suited up for the MCU.
During a video interview with Vanity Fair, she was shown a clip from Iron Man (2008), the film that kicked off the Marvel Cinematic Universe. When asked if she ever imagined she’d go on to star in six more Marvel films, Paltrow responded in disbelief:
“That can’t be right. I can’t have been in seven. Is that true?”
While watching the Iron Man clip, she commented on her wig, saying it didn’t look great on screen. She then reminisced about working with Robert Downey Jr. and director Jon Favreau, recalling how much fun they had on set. Paltrow described the first Iron Man film as an “independent movie,” revealing that much of it was improvised:
“There was a lot of rewriting. We’d go to Jon’s trailer in the morning, and the three of us would improvise.”
She noted that such spontaneity is rare in big-budget films, but Favreau wanted to bring a sense of realism to the fictional world. At the time, the cast and crew felt no pressure, as no one expected the movie to be a massive success.
“The studio felt they had taken this big risk with Robert as a leading man, and it probably won’t even be a hit,” she explained.
Of course, Iron Man went on to launch one of the biggest film franchises in history, with Paltrow reprising her role in multiple MCU films, including Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.