Gwyneth Paltrow played Pepper Potts in the MCU from Iron Man (2008) until Avengers: Endgame (2019). She hasn't appeared in the franchise since and don't expect that to change.
“I'm asking this every time, answer the question,” Paltrow was asked in an Instagram story Q+A. “Why did you stop with Marvel and do you miss RDJ [Robert Downey Jr.]?”
While most questions were about motherhood, her candles, and other non-MCU topics, Paltrow decided to answer this question.
She’s so funny I’m sorry pic.twitter.com/7gynGEWCNI
— Joe Gunn (@joegunn) August 30, 2023
“Oh my God, stop yelling at me!” she jokingly answered. “I didn't, I just, it just — we just stopped doing it because Iron Man died and why do you need Pepper Potts without Iron Man? I don't know.”
She concluded, “Call Marvel and yell at them, not me. I'm just sitting here.”
Gwyneth Paltrow won an Oscar for her performance in Shakespeare in Love in 1998. She has also starred in the likes of Hook, Seven, and Emma prior to her MCU work.
In 2008, she starred in the MCU's first film, Iron Man. She would go on to appear in seven more films in the franchise including Spider-Man: Homecoming, Avengers Infinity War and Endgame.
While Iron Man is, in fact, dead, who's to say Paltrow never returns? There is an Ironheart series coming up for Disney+, and with tech that harkens back to Iron Man, maybe Pepper Potts will make her MCU return. Even if she doesn't return, Paltrow will be busy. She has her candles, lifestyle brand, and other non-movie ventures to take care of.