Why Gwyneth Paltrow Is Back On Sourdough and Cheese

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0:19This is The Run-Through. I'm Cho Minardi. This week on the show, I had an opportunity to speak with Gwyneth Paltrow, who was on the cover of our November issue for British Vogue. After a five-year break, she's returning back to the big screen for the highly anticipated film Marty Supreme, where she stars alongside Timothee Chalamet, Odessa Azeon, Tyler the Creator and Kevin O 'Leary. I saw the film and let me tell you, I absolutely adored it. It definitely ranks up there with one of my favorite films of the year. And I actually am planning to see it again when it comes out next month. It was just so good.

0:55It was one of those films that keeps you right on the edge of your seat. And I thought Timothy and Gwyneth were, we just couldn't take my eyes off them. Gwyneth and I spoke about the fabulous costumes and we were both kind of fangirling about the costume designer Miyako Belize, who also did Uncut Gems and has incredible style of her own. And of course, we dived into my favorite topic, wellness, and what her new cigarette is. Hint, it's sourdough and cheese. So here's my conversation with Gwyneth.

1:35Hi, how are you doing? I'm good. How are you? I'm good. I'm good. We've had such an amazing response to your cover. So I just wanted to thank you so, so, so much. Thank you so much. I'm so honored. It was wonderful. The sales on the stands were through the roof. Ah! She still got it. She still got it. She definitely still got it. I don't know about that, but no, thank you. I was really so thrilled to have been asked to do it. And I thought the pictures were so cool. And it was such a fun day on set. So thank you. I'm so glad. It's one of my favorite covers, recent covers. So thank you. I love that you got into the spirit of it and completely understood what we wanted to do.

2:24So it was so great to have you collaborating on it. It was awesome. I loved it. It was like postmodern Valley of the Dolls meets Brooklyn fashion. That was cool. Perfect. Exactly. I went to see Marty Supreme last week, and I think it's one of my favorite films in a long time. It was so much fun. I think I want to go and see it again. I'm itching to go and see it with friends and family. It was so, so, so much fun. I mean, it was very cool for this to be your first major return to the big screen because it's such a fab movie. And you said in interviews that you decided to return since your kids are now out of the house.

3:05You mentioned that you felt a little bit rusty. But what was particularly challenging for you? Because you didn't look rusty at all, I must say. Thank you so much. you know, I think it's like anything when you do it, when you do something a lot and with great frequency, you know, you just, it almost becomes like a second skin. Like you just, you know, it's sort of that 10 ,000 hour Malcolm Gladwell thing. And when you have a big break from something that you did with great frequency, it's like, wait a minute, you know, do I know how to do this. I was really, I was really nervous. I was, I had fear around the idea that I would, you know, not be able to sort of, I don't know.

3:52Like, I was like, is there some dumb things? Like, do I remember how to learn lines? And like, how did I use to get into deep emotion? And like, is all that stuff still going to be there? And I remember the first day it was, it was great because the first day was that scene that we're rehearsing a play. And I started in the theater. So I felt like, oh my God, thank God, you know, I'm up here kind of on the boards, working something out. And it was, you know, we were working out the scene. So I was like, this is such a perfect blessing. Like the way back into this is us trying to work through, you know, a scene on stage.

4:35And then it started to come back, you know. And then I was like, oh, okay, I remember how to do this. But I was nervous. Well, you were fabulous. I want to ask what your first reaction was to the script, because who did you channel to play the role of Kay? And what did you think when you read the script? When I read the script, I was like, wow, this is so original. And like, how is this going to work? It was so ambitious on the page. You know, all of the breathless kind of scenes in the cab and in the car. and, you know, trying to get the dog. And I was, you know, then juxtaposed with this very, like, these very human moments.

5:15And I just thought, this is really ambitious. You know, how is this director going to pull this off? But I trusted that he absolutely would. I was kind of, you know, I thought a lot about Grace Kelly, like sort of a darker, more fucked up version of Grace Kelly, you know, who had been this big movie star and then stopped to get married and, you know, seemed a bit broken after that in a certain way. And very parallel with Kay, you know, she had this big film career and then she gets married and she stops. And she's incredibly broken because, you know, she's given up her dream for some sense of security, and then her son was killed in the war, and she's, you know, she has this deep, deep sadness, which I thought was so intriguing, like, and also this kind of hardness that comes with being, you know, disappointed by life and disappointed by one turn of events after another, but then she still had this vulnerability there, So I just thought she was so interesting to play.

6:31Yeah, I mean, I love the moment when she was like, you can have my necklace. And I was like, oh my God, like I just wasn't. I'm sorry for any spoilers, guys. You'll have to interpret everything later. But there's this wonderful, I think Kay continues to surprise us with her complexities. And I really, I thought you really brought those to life. In 2020, when you decided to step away from acting, you said that a lot of the shine of acting had wore off and that you felt you really didn't love acting. But I didn't get that feeling when you were on the screen. Did you feel like that sentiment has changed since having a break?

7:06It's a very good question. And it's something that I have been thinking about. And I think I took my first break after my daughter was born. And I think I was so burnt out from doing it in my 20s in a way that I was really like chasing something. And I thought, oh my God, I better do this role and this role and this role, because what if I never get asked to do anything again? I have to do everything. And I, you know, was kind of trying to prove something to myself. And I, one, one year I did five movies, you know, and I just was so exhausted. and I thought, you know, there was an aspect of it, you know, that was felt a bit fruitless and I had come up against some kind of nasty people and I was just like, I need to stop.

7:57I just need to stop. And then when I went back, you know, here and there slowly over the course of the next however many years, I thought, oh, you know, I do have love for this, but then I, you know, It was complicated. And I think this time, you know, I think it's really wonderful when an artist can take a break if they're feeling like they're not generating something out of, from the right place, I should say. And it's interesting, you know, when you make a living at art, sometimes, of course, you're doing something that, you know, we all need a paycheck. So it's like sometimes you're doing something that isn't totally aligned with your artistic expression or your, you know, your true self in that way.

8:46And I just, and that's okay too, right? It's okay to, and it's a blessing, obviously, to be able to make a living if you're doing something artistic. but I think I needed the break in order to really start to germinate this excitement about doing it again and this kind of freedom that comes with standing in a room and playing someone completely different to yourself with a different value set and you know and getting all that excitement back And like, I was so excited to do my costume fittings. And, you know, the clothes in this movie were so phenomenal. And I found myself excited in the hair and makeup chair, you know, trying all these looks.

9:35And I hadn't felt that way in a really long time. So I felt like, I felt so grateful to be so full of life again about it. And it was like that burnout feeling was just nowhere in sight. What were some of, I loved the costumes too. And I thought that the look in the park is kind of incredible. That like scarlet red look that you wear in the park. Are there any favorites that you have? Oh my gosh. It's so funny because the costume director and I really wanted a different dress for the park scene. But Josh was like, the director was like, no, it has to be that. It has to be red. I loved my costumes.

10:15I think one of my favorite ones, you never really saw the full look, unfortunately, because it's when I was in the restaurant smoking. But there's this beautiful yellow, like, organza or chiffon, beautiful thing that Nyako, the costume designer, built. And I just thought, oh, my God, this is just heaven on earth. And she's so brilliant because she's so cool. Like she's such a New York cool girl and she's so stylish and she's like so on the cusp of everything. And then she was making these 50s outfits that were like so cool and so beautiful and so period, but also so modern. I was obsessed with her and the clothes.

11:04Oh, I'm totally obsessed with Miyako. Everybody should absolutely, if you haven't heard of Miyako Belize, you should absolutely go and Google her now. she is one of the coolest girls in New York. She has incredible style. Yeah, she's the best. I'm so happy to hear that because I think she's sort of quietly under the radar. I think she did an amazing job in Uncut Gems too, but this took it to, you just saw more of her range there. Obviously, you've collaborated with many amazing people for costumes and we'll get to that a bit later. But before we move on, I wanted to ask you, do you plan on acting more?

11:40I mean, you have so many pots on the fire. I was just impressed that you could, because you launched a fashion line and you obviously have this incredible wellness empire. Film now, I think, obviously is something that you have to be completely drawn to, spellbound by, to probably participate in. And I imagine that's the criteria moving forward, right? I mean, what would tempt you to do another film? I mean, you nailed it. It's really like, I think somebody was asking me this the other day and my manager was asking me this the other day, you know, and I said, you know, I think if I was going to entertain doing stuff, I think I would do it differently than I did it when I was 21, you know, and of course.

12:25But when I was 21, as I said, like, I was just like, okay, okay, like, sure. And I think this time, you know, I do have to balance with my other job, which is incredibly demanding. But I think I would really want to make sure that I was doing something where I felt that I was really growing as an artist and really being challenged and working with incredible people, you know, and just be very judicious about what I was going to do. I mean, is there a role that you feel that you haven't had a chance to play? I mean, I don't know if you're interested in doing a horror or something totally off the cuff.

13:05I feel like you've quite arranged already, but is there anything that you're secretly wishing somebody could write for you? I think it would be really interesting to do something around like a story of an older woman. Like I'm really interested in how women age and how they regard themselves as they age. And I don't know, I look forward to playing like older parts for sure. And I've never done anything where I've really transformed, you know, like in Marty Supreme, same timothy has pockmarks and they made his eyes beady with contacts and glasses i know i couldn't work out is that real they're so real the skin looks so real i know and it's all makeup wow i know and he has in real life he has beautiful skin and i thought i was like he made a comment and i was like oh you know there you can do micro needling for that and he's like this is makeup i I was like, oh, shit.

14:05I didn't realize the makeup was so good that I thought he had little acne scars. Anyway, so I think it would be interesting to one day do something like that. I've never done anything like that where I'm really transformed in the face. Yeah, I honestly had to question whether I'd always just overlooked the fact that he had this crazy skin. And then I was like, oh, my God, it must be makeup. It's so convincing. No, he has beautiful skin. Like his skin in real life, you're like, oh, my gosh. Well, he glows in general, so that doesn't really surprise me. He seems to have quite a presence. Indeed.

14:49In fact, on the subject of Timothy, one of the funniest quotes in your British Vogue profile that literally made me laugh out loud when I read it in the first draft was knowing that the story about you discovering that Kylie Jenner is his girlfriend. Oh, my God. I mean, you have two amazing kids, Apple and Moses. And I imagine they're teaching you a lot about popular culture. And you've said that. How did they react to that note in the piece? Did they school you on it afterwards? They don't read my articles. Are you kidding? I don't remember how I found out. But they were like, Mom, you are so like, are you insane?

15:30How can you not know this? But I don't know. I just I don't read that kind of stuff. I love that you also mentioned that the women in your group chat were applauding the fact. I'm so embarrassed when I think of that story. I'm like, oh, my God. I found it very funny and very human. So I loved it. I also love the fact that you mentioned in the that in your group chat that women were applauding those those bts scenes that leaked which were pretty hot and steamy which i loved yeah all my mom chats were like everyone was losing it my english mummy school chat my like you know elementary school one the high school it was very funny i'm curious to know what goes down in the group chat and how it's evolved over the years because obviously you had your english you've kept your english mommies in the group chat which is so cool is your group chat filled with other people who have children who've just left the house?

16:25Are you exchanging wellness secrets? What's a hot topic in the group chat right now? Well, in my group chat from today, which is an amazing group of women that I'm really close to in Los Angeles, it's really about hormones and where we're having dinner on Saturday night. So not really that exciting. And the big debate is, are we having dinner at 6 or 6.30? so I love an early dinner yeah it's not that scintillating really but um I don't know you know I'm very close with all my women friends and that they they're how I get through life you know and um I have a lot of luckily in in my like mummy chats um or sorry now you're English I'm I have my mummies and my mommies.

17:19But, you know, that group of women, our kids brought us together. So we're going through life and all of its stages at the same time. And it's so fortifying and incredibly enriching to, you know, have like a really wobbly moment where, you know, you're empty nesting or you're, you know, or if a kid, one of the kids on the, on the chat, like is having an issue. We all just come together in this beautiful cocoon and are there for each other and share insights or doctors or, you know, whatever it is. And it just, I think it makes the whole process of parenting feel like it takes a village and you have a village.

18:04That's so true.

18:08The run-through will be back in a moment.

18:15Thank you.

18:56And we're back. I was actually recently listening to a podcast with you and Rick Rubin, and I loved it. It was so, so good. And there was a moment that really struck a chord with me when you were talking about your father and your father's health and how there was a moment in his cancer treatment where they added sugar to light up the cancer cells. And I think it was a real light bulb moment for you. And I'm also become obsessed with wellness and a personal health journey. And also with an older parent, you understand what those conversations are. And I think it's a real generational divide. And I love how you sort of took control and kind of use that information to sort of ask questions and that your obsession was coming from a real place.

19:45I mean, now I think you were so ahead of the curve. I don't think I'd heard of the term wellness back then. And I know now it's become such a loaded term. It's shifted over the years. How do you feel about how this term and this idea have shifted and this idea of well-being since you first started? You're absolutely right that my father's illness kind of kicked off my obsession with to what degree can the body heal itself. It was really radical when I was starting to talk about it. And obviously people were like, what the fuck are you talking about? And, you know, there was a lot of criticism around it, which I always found so interesting because, you know, don't get me started.

20:28but there are industrial complexes built around us not asking questions like that. So I've always been like, we should be at liberty to ask any questions to our doctors, to our pharmacists, to our naturopaths. Like, we are entitled to have agency and curiosity around our own health. and what's been so interesting in the last, you know, 17 years or so since I started Goop and started talking about this stuff is that the whole world has sort of caught up to this idea that we all should be entitled to ask questions and to push back and to say like, hey, why is this thing full of substances that are banned in the EU, but they're okay for us here.

21:21I think it's so great what's happening. And, you know, it's also a nice vindication. Right? It must be, because honestly, it's like, you're right, the world is just catching up. I feel like my entire feed is that now, you know, which is the next wellness hack or something, you know, thing that I need to include to my routine. Because of course, people then capitalize on that and capitalize on the fear of, you know, do I need this and that and all these things. And so I always go back to the same thing was to just trust your instinct about yourself, trust your body. And I think it's always important to get, you know, whatever research is available on these new emerging modalities or gadgets or whatever, it's important to continue to educate oneself.

22:10Yeah, I think you're right. I think it's important to be sensible because I think, as with anything, there are sort of extremes in every direction without naming any people. But I can think of a one longevity influencer who obviously take things to the ultimate extreme. But I think a sensible approach is the way to go. Are there things that you have stuck over the years that you've just thought, you know, I've been doing that? You look back and I started doing this when I was 17 years ago. Things that you put to the wayside. What are some of the simple things that you have stuck to? You know, through my whole journey, there have been times where I've been like incredibly strict with this or that.

22:52You know, Ashtanga Yoga, six days a week, rain or shine, being macrobiotic, you know, doing. And for me, what I've found is that the best wellness things are kind of the most obvious, right? Like, try to sleep well. Make sure you're sleeping. Make sure you're hydrating. Like, water is fantastic for moving things through the body. nutritional density and quality of food, movement, exercise, sweating. You know, it's pretty, it's nothing really all that revolutionary. I mean, of course, like things can get more complex and we are all sui generis. We are one of one and we all process and metabolize things differently.

23:37So it's never gonna be a one size fits all wellness program anyway. But meditation, exercise, breathing, sleeping, hydration, good food, that's basically what it comes down to. Agreed. And I do, however, have a somewhat unhealthy obsession with my aura ring. And I think I see you have one. I know you, are you wearing one right now? Yes! Oh, yeah. I never take it off. Me either, me either. Sometimes even when I do a photo shoot, I'm like, guys, you know, if I take it off and we're doing, all right, I'll take it off. I know. Honestly, I just never really take it off. What's your sleep score right now?

24:22My sleep score is so varied. Like, if my hormones have wreaked havoc on my sleep score. Like, I used to get a crown every night. And then about a year ago when my hormones really fell off a cliff, now it's so bizarre. Like some nights I'll get a 93 and then the next night I'll have like 71 and it'll be like, pay attention. You know, this is you're in trouble kind of a thing. So it's all over the place. I don't drink anymore. But when I did, it was like one drink would just send me into a complete like my HRV was in the floor. And yeah, it just it's just never worth it. I still love one cocktail a week, though.

25:03I'm not giving it up. I've heard. I love this ritual. I think it's really, I think it's important to have a little bit of pleasure. What is your cocktail of choice? So I'm either an old fashioned girl or a vodka martini girl with olives. Very chic. I would expect nothing less. I think I work at, you know, an advertising agency in the 50s in New York. You know, those are my... I also love that you talked about having your last cigarette, which you said was seven years ago. So, I mean, congratulations. That's a long time ago. I miss it today. And I also think that the news, it made news, and I love that this made news, that you're back on to sourdough and cheese.

25:48Is that your new cigarette? You know, I recently, I would say in the last, you know, six months, because I was pretty strictly no grains for a while to deal with some inflammation stuff. And now I'm back on good sourdough and some grains and cheese. And I just love it so much. Love, love, love. Yeah, there's nothing that beats cheese and a good piece of sourdough bread. So delicious. The run through will be back in a moment.

27:06I love that you talk about how you talk about aging and then and that you're against freezing in time and it's so refreshing I'm curious to know if there are things that you've edited out of your beauty routine over the years that adds to that or I've always been kind of a simple girl around this kind of stuff like I never even had a beauty routine until I was in my probably late thirties. I mean, I was just like, you know, soap and water and hot washcloth and moisturizer, basically. But then, you know, I did, I did start to really understand that skincare is incredibly important. And there really are ingredients that make your skin, you know, that where you can, that makes it makes products really efficacious and which is what we do at but make them very clean.

28:01And so, you know, I have like, I have probably six Goop products on my counter. And depending on the day, you know, I use whichever one I need, but I don't use all of them every day, twice a day. Of course, like, I want to age, but I also would like to look sort of as vibrant as possible while that's happening. But I'm not interested in trying to erase every crow's feet and this and that. It's like, you know, this is the story of my life, you know, it's like the wrinkles around my eyes and my lips. And, you know, when things start to fall down, it's like not great. It's not ideal. I'm not like super into it, but I also don't want to try to look like I'm 28 years old.

28:46Yeah, no, I think, I mean, I think it's really, it's really tough, especially in the world you're in, not to feel the sense of pressure because you're faced with your image all the time. And I think there are all these expectations. And I understand, I understand why a lot of women who are in a world where they have to sort of present and be forward facing, I understand why they do it. Have you ever felt that pressure before? I'm wondering, because I just think it seems very intense. It seems very intense. More than feeling pressure from the outside world. It's like, how does one reconcile with themselves, that they're aging, that you're letting go of a certain kind of, you know, quote unquote beauty, that if the world looked at you in a certain fashion, they're not going to look at you that way anymore.