Can you mark the movement of Hollywood based on Brad Pitt? Maybe! His presence at least had a small effect on Gwyneth Paltrow's career — she nearly rejected the lead role in Shakespeare in Love due to their breakup.
"I was in the middle of a terrible breakup," Paltrow told Variety, alluding to her relationship with Pitt, "and the idea of going to England and being far from home just seemed — I didn’t even read [the script]."
Added Paltrow, "I was just like, ‘I can’t read anything right now. I’m having a really hard time.’” She eventually read the script months later, and the project won her an Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role.
Pitt and Paltrow were one of the first big Brad Pitt couplings. They dated from 1994 to 1997, and even got engaged. When they broke up, Paltrow was only 25 years old. Now, years later, she has an Oscar and a new deal with Netflix. And Pitt just attended Jennifer Aniston's birthday party. Oh, the sands of time! How they move to the rhythm of Brad Pitt!