Gwyneth Paltrow will only watch herself in a scene from The Royal Tenenbaums. Paltrow has had a long and successful career in movies, winning a Golden Globe Award and an Oscar for Shakespeare In Love, and starring in Seven, The Talented Mr. Ripley, Contagion, and as Pepper Potts in Iron Man and the subsequent MCU films. She currently stars in Ryan Murphy’s The Politician on Netflix as Georgina Hobart with Ben Platt.

The Royal Tenenbaums is the third film directed by Wes Anderson and is considered one of his best works. The film that Anderson co-wrote with Owen Wilson, revolves around the Tenenbaum family, specifically the three overachieving children and their father who comes back into their lives, trying to reconcile his family. The film starred Paltrow, Gene Hackman, Anjelica Huston, Ben Stiller, Bill Murray, Luke Wilson, and Danny Glover, with Alec Baldwin as the narrator. The movie was a huge success with critics and audiences, garnering Anderson and Owen Wilson their first Oscar nomination for writing. It also turns out it holds a sentimental place for Paltrow.

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Per EW, in a reunion with The Royal Tenenbaums cast at the Tribeca Film Festival, it was revealed that Paltrow likes to watch a specific scene from the movie. Paltrow plays Margot Tenenbaum, an adopted third child of the family, who has an affair behind her husband’s back and is the object of her brother Richie’s affection. Paltrow distinctly remembers the scene when Margot reunites with Richie, because her real-life father, Bruce Paltrow, who passed away shortly after in October 2002, was visiting her on set. Paltrow’s full statement can be read below:

“My dad was there, and it was this very special day. I really hate, hate seeing myself in a movie ever. That’s kind of like the only scene that I can watch of myself, like of my whole career.”

Many actors are known for not wanting to watch their performances in their work, but it is understandable, now knowing the backstory and context behind that particular scene from the movie, that Paltrow would have a nostalgic attachment to that scene. The scene also has an emotional feeling to it as Margot arrives at the bus depot where Richie, played by Luke Wilson, is waiting for her. As Margot gets off the bus, Richie stands up, and they embrace as the song “These Days” by Nico plays in the background.

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The Royal Tenenbaums continues to have a passionate following due to its style of humor and quirky characters. It is very touching to imagine Paltrow’s father there when she and Wilson were shooting that scene. It being one of the few scenes of her entire career that Paltrow is able to rewatch adds to the depth of The Royal Tenenbaums and the impact of its success.

Source: EW

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Christopher Tsang
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Chris is a feature news writer for ScreenRant who joined the team in 2020. A graduate of NYU Tisch program, Chris has been passionate about films and television and enjoys a range of content, especially ones with great writing. Chris also likes to watch award shows and predict the winners with his recent success predicting Anthony Hopkins to win for The Father at the Oscars.

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