Gwyneth Paltrow is used to “taking crap,” as a source told Page Six. But she now joins the ranks of Hollywood celebs being vilified not just over their support of Israel but also for her self-admitted “pretty centrist” views.
The Oscar winner — whose late father, director Bruce Paltrow, was Jewish — has so far stayed silent in the wake of online attacks over appearing in an ad for a luxury Israeli real estate developer.
“With Goop, Gwyneth has showed that she is always willing to take on criticism and work from it,” a friend told Page Six of Paltrow’s lifestyle brand. “She’s used to taking crap, but she did not expect the fallout from this ad at all.”
The star was blasted for filming a commercial for 51 Park in the coastal city of Herzliya, prompting notable commenters including Livia Firth and Alana Hadid to call for her cancellation.
Hadid, the pro-Palestine activist and sister of models Bella and Gigi Hadid, wrote on Instagram, “This is not even tone deaf it’s actually complicit af.”
Firth, the ex-wife of actor Colin Firth, said she had cancelled a planned trip by Paltrow to Quintosapore, the regenerative farm she runs in Umbria, because “what she did is completely unacceptable.”
The Green Carpet Fashion Award creator also alleged that “complicit” Paltrow supported the alleged “genocide” of the Palestinian people by collaborating with Israeli real estate group Aviv Melisron.
“Making an ad for a luxury condo is as disgusting as it can be for someone [with] privilege,” Firth said, adding that Paltrow needed to be “canceled.”
“Gwyneth is an example to every producer and actor that you cannot engage with Israel without backlash,” Hen Mazzig, Israeli author and Senior Fellow at The Tel Aviv Institute, told Page Six. “If you’re working in Hollywood today, it’s a smart career move not to say anything.”
Scarlett Johansson, another Jewish actress, faced similar issues when she starred in an ad for Soda Stream in 2014. The company’s factory was on the West Bank, and Johansson stepped down from her role as Oxfam ambassador amid the backlash, later insisting she had no regrets about the ad.
“No, I stand behind that decision,” she said. “I was aware of that particular factory before I signed. And it still doesn’t seem like a problem — at least not until someone comes up with a solution to the closing of that factory and leaving all those people destitute.”
Although some critics went so far as to say Paltrow is promoting stolen territory, Herzliya was officially bought from Arabs in the 1920s and originally set up as a farming community in November 1924.
According to the Paltrow pal, the actress, who’s preparing to star in the Netflix movie adaptation of Belle Burden’s hit book, “Strangers,” is also being attacked for her political views.
The mom-of-two clarified her beliefs earlier this month, telling ‘The Good Podcast’ that Brad Falchuk, her husband of seven years, is “so progressive …
“I’m pretty centrist and my husband thinks I’m a Republican,” she said. “Which, I’m not a Republican … I feel I’m completely an Independent.”
“She’s a business owner, she’s a sensible moderate. A centrist,” Paltrow’s friend said. “But the idea of being a Conservative in Hollywood is anathema.”
While Aviv Melisron has not responded to the outcry over its ad, Gabi Attal, who ran the creative campaign, wrote on Linkedin they turned to Paltrow as they needed a figure “who effortlessly embodies international elegance, a premium lifestyle, and uncompromising quality.”
We have reached out to Paltrow for comment.
