“You can only make so many good ones”: Gwyneth Paltrow on superhero movies

Washington [US]: Actor Gwyneth Paltrow shared her thoughts on Hollywood’s push into superhero movies and said “You can only make so many good” films within that genre, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The actor appeared on the latest episode of ‘Hot Ones’ when presenter Sean Evans referenced a remark Cord Jefferson made during his recent Oscar speech. While winning his Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, the American Fiction filmmaker made an appeal to industry executives, stating, “Instead of making one 200 million dollar movie, try making 20 $10 million movies.”

“I absolutely understand where he’s coming from,” Paltrow said in response. “You want to have the best chance of having a strong ROI. People put a lot of money into these things and they want them to be profitable. But I think if I look at the industry as a whole, this big push into superhero movies … you can only make so many good ones that feel truly original, and yet they’re still always trying to reach as many people as possible, which sometimes hinders quality or specificity or real point of view.”

Though Paltrow’s most well-known role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe was as Pepper Potts in 2008’s ‘Iron Man’, she rose to prominence in the 1990s with roles in ‘The Talented Mr. Ripley’ and ‘Shakespeare in Love’, the latter of which earned her an Oscar.

“I grew up doing those [mid-budget] movies and I sometimes lament the fact that I look back at some movies I made in the ’90s and think that just wouldn’t get made now,” she added. “You get more diversity of art when there is less at stake and people can, sort of, express their true voice and make a film the way they want to make it. And I think those are generally the more resonant ones.”

The actress also starred in two other standalone ‘Iron Man’ movies as well as other Marvel projects, but her last appearance as Pepper Potts was in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame.

Paltrow joined a growing list of actors, including Paul Dano and Taika Waititi, who have opened up about superhero fatigue that’s hit the film industry in recent years, according to The Hollywood Reporter.