Robert Downey Jr. Teases Gwyneth Paltrow for Constantly Being Confused by the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Robert Downey Jr. humorously highlighted Gwyneth Paltrow's confusion over the Marvel Cinematic Universe while presenting her with an award at The Hollywood Reporter's Women In Entertainment Gala on December 3.

Paltrow, 53, who plays Pepper Potts in the MCU, has previously admitted to forgetting her own appearance in Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017). Downey Jr., 60, joked about this as he honored her with the Sherry Lansing Leadership Award.

Opening his speech, Downey Jr. quipped: "She's reviled. Revered. No, I'm wrong. Reviled and revered. Maybe both. Impossibly intelligent, but forever confused by the basic tenets of the Marvel universe and its inhabitants."

The duo shared the screen in the three Iron Man films, which laid the foundation for the wider Marvel universe. Downey Jr. plays Tony Stark/Iron Man, while Paltrow is his on-screen love interest and eventual wife, Pepper Potts.

Downey Jr. recounted a moment when Paltrow asked, "Who's that? He said his name was Peter," referring to Tom Holland. Downey Jr. jokingly corrected her: "No, his character's name is Peter. That's Tom Holland. You did four movies with him."

He added, "She's a great actor and yet wholly unimpressed with herself. Got a few blind spots, but she's got vision. Vision. All caps. I pulled her out of her first unannounced retirement from cinema in 2007. She was birthing and building Goop between takes on the set of Iron Man, having spent the previous decade and a half just collecting Oscars and Globes."

Paltrow appeared as Pepper Potts in seven MCU films from 2008's original Iron Man through 2019's Avengers: Endgame. Despite this, she is known for not keeping track of the franchises details and once even forgot about Samuel L. Jacksons role as Nick Fury.

Earlier this year, Paltrow humorously told her Instagram followers to "stop yelling at me" about reprising her role in future MCU projects. She explained, "We just stopped doing it because Iron Man died and why do you need Pepper Potts without Iron Man? I dont know!"

Downey Jr. is set to return to the MCU in 2026 as the villain Doctor Doom in Avengers: Doomsday. Paltrow's future as Pepper Potts remains uncertain. In a separate interview, she said she has "not said yes to anything yet" following her upcoming film Marty Supreme, which releases on December 25. Regarding a potential MCU comeback, she commented, "We'll see. We'll see."

Author: Maya Henderson