Gwyneth Paltrow Brushes Off Meghan Markle Comparisons, Shares Thoughts on Lifestyle Branding

Gwyneth Paltrow, the Oscar-winning actress turned Goop lifestyle mogul, recently opened up about her neighborly proximity to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry, while emphasizing that their relationship is more "wave from the driveway" than "borrow a cup of sugar."

In an interview with Vanity Fair, Paltrow revealed, "I don’t know Meghan and Harry. I mean, I’ve met Meghan, who seems really lovely, but I don’t know her at all." She even joked about breaking through their security detail to deliver a pie—an image that’s as sweet as it is delightfully absurd.

When asked about Markle’s foray into the lifestyle brand arena with her "As Ever" project, Paltrow, who’s no stranger to unsolicited comparisons herself, admitted she hadn’t seen the Netflix trailer for Markle’s series "With Love, Meghan" but offered support nonetheless. "When there’s noise about certain women in the culture, I do have, always, a strong instinct to stand up for them," she said. "Everybody deserves an attempt at everything that they want to try." A classy but firm clap back to the critics, if you ask me.

Paltrow also acknowledged the comparisons between herself, Markle, and other lifestyle icons like Martha Stewart—who famously threw shade at Paltrow years ago by suggesting her lifestyle pivot was an escape from acting insecurity. But Gwyneth, ever the cool cucumber, brushed it off. "And then you have someone like Oprah that’s like, ‘Of course I’ll be your first podcast guest.’ That’s how I try to be with other women," she shared.

Switching gears, Paltrow reflected on her past relationship with Brad Pitt, likening it to dating royalty. "It’s like having dated, I don’t know, Prince William or something. That’s always going to come up," she quipped. The two, who were engaged in the '90s before calling it quits, have since rekindled a friendship. In a 2022 Goop interview, Pitt called her "a lovely friend," to which Paltrow responded, "I love you so much." Honestly, this is ex-goals at its absolute peak.

Reflecting on her journey, Paltrow told Vanity Fair, "I really embrace the roads that I take. I almost never go back and noodle about choices." Spoken like a woman who’s too busy building empires and baking metaphorical pies to dwell on the past.