Robert Downey Jr. lights up gala with Gwyneth Paltrow roast

American actor Robert Downey Jr. teases Gwyneth Paltrow about her ongoing difficulty in keeping Marvel’s track record.

In a recent Sherry Lansing Leadership award at The Hollywood Reporter’s Annual Women In Entertainment Gala, Robert Downey teased Gwyneth Paltrow about her difficulty in keeping the record of the Marvel world.

On December 3, during the event, he joked that she remained “forever confused by the basic tenets of the Marvel universe and its inhabitants”.

The two starred together in the three Iron Man films, where Paltrow played Pepper Potts, Tony Stark’s love interest and later wife, in what ultimately became the foundation of the massive Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Despite so many years in superhero territory, Downey Jr. said she still struggled to remember who’s who on set.

He reflected on a moment when she asked, “Who’s that? He said his name was Peter. He further told her in detail, “No, his character’s name is Peter. That’s Tom Holland. You did four movies with him”.

He affectionately described her as both admired and misunderstood, saying she might be “reviled and revered,” possibly a mix of both.  Poking fun at her quirks, he praised her brilliance, too. He appreciated her work, “She’s a great actor and yet wholly unimpressed with herself”. He said, adding that while she may have “a few blind spots,” she also has “vision. Vision. All caps”.

Downey Jr. also pointed out that he helped pull Paltrow back into movies when she joined Iron Man in 2007.

At the same time, she was launching Goop and balancing motherhood, all while holding onto the Hollywood success she had already built with her Oscar and Golden Globe wins.

With humour and admiration woven together, his tribute showed just how far their professional bond and friendship have come, and how Paltrow’s lighthearted confusion about Marvel has become one of the most endearing parts of her story.