Why Gwyneth Paltrow Refused to Film a Sex Scene with Ethan Hawke

Gwyneth Paltrow and Ethan Hawke have shared some interesting insights into their past experiences on set, particularly regarding a potential sex scene in the 1998 film adaptation of Great Expectations. The two actors reflected on their time working together during a recent video for Vanity Fair, where they discussed how the director, Alfonso Cuarón, had suggested including a love scene in the movie.

Hawke recalled the moment when Cuarón proposed the idea. “Do you remember Alfonso pitching you the love scene?” he asked Paltrow. She responded with a mix of shock and disbelief, saying, “Oh my god. And I was like, ‘Oh my god, my father’s going to see this.’”

Hawke then described how Cuarón had envisioned the scene, explaining that the camera would move from Paltrow’s belly up to her breasts and then to her face as she reached ecstasy. He added that the scene would end with a dramatic explosion of light, like the sun.

“I remember looking at Gwyneth, and Gwyneth is like, ‘Alfonso, I'm never going to do that,’” Hawke concluded, highlighting Paltrow’s firm stance on the matter.

Paltrow later explained why she wasn’t comfortable with filming such scenes at the time. “In my early career, I was really self-conscious about my dad and grandfather seeing this kind of stuff,” she said. “Like it really bothered me. Now, I wouldn’t care.”

Despite her reluctance, Hawke praised Paltrow for handling the situation with grace. “I think in regard to that scene, you had an awareness of the way that the business works, and the ways in which those kinds of images could be manipulated and what it meant to your dad,” he said.

Paltrow admitted that she might have been too prudish at the time. “Maybe I was too prudish in the moment,” she confessed. Hawke responded, “I don't think you were.”

In Great Expectations, Hawke plays Finnegan “Finn” Bell, an orphan who falls deeply in love with Estella, played by Paltrow. The film, set in New York City, was a significant project for both actors.

This year, Paltrow made a return to acting after a nearly seven-year hiatus. She appeared in the new Josh Safdie film, Marty Supreme, where she plays Kay Stone, a retired movie actor who becomes romantically involved with an up-and-coming ping pong star named Marty Supreme, portrayed by Timothee Chalamet.

In the recently released film, the two actors filmed quite a few sex scenes. Paltrow revealed that she worked with an intimacy coordinator, something she hadn’t known existed before. “I mean, we have a lot of sex in this movie. There’s a lot—a lot,” she told Vanity Fair in March.

She explained that when the intimacy coordinator asked if she was comfortable with a certain move, she responded with a bit of surprise. “Girl, I’m from the era where you get naked, you get in bed, the camera’s on.” However, Paltrow ultimately decided that working with the intimacy coordinator wasn’t necessary for her.

“We said, ‘I think we’re good. You can step a little bit back.’ I don’t know how it is for kids who are starting out, but…if someone is like, ‘Okay, and then he’s going to put his hand here.’” She demonstrated by placing her hand on her own shoulder. “I would feel, as an artist, very stifled by that.”