8 Men Who Have Romanced Gwyneth Paltrow, From A-List Actors to a Ketchup Heir

Updated on 5/3/2023 at 3:40 PM

Gwyneth Paltrow has been married to TV producer Brad Falchuk since 2018. But before Falchuk put a ring on it, Paltrow was engaged to another Brad, last name Pitt — you may have heard of him? She also famously dated Ben Affleck, who is now married to Jennifer Lopez. And we all know about her infamous "conscious uncoupling" from Coldplay rocker Chris Martin.

During Paltrow's May appearance on Alex Cooper's "Call Her Daddy" podcast, the Goop founder recalled her past romances, saying meeting Pitt while filming their 1995 film "Se7en" was "major love at first sight." She added, "It was crazy." Despite getting engaged, the couple eventually broke up in 1997. "I had a lot of development to do, looking back in hindsight. In a lot of ways, I didn't really fully start to come into myself until I was 40 years old," Paltrow said. "And I had such a pleasing issue. I didn't really even understand how to listen to my instincts and act from that place."

Paltrow noted that she was "totally heartbroken when we broke up," and added, "He's a great guy. He's wonderful, I really like him a lot."

When asked to compare her famous exes in a game, Paltrow revealed both Pitt and Affleck were good kissers, but when it came down to who was better in bed, she said the choice was "really hard." She explained, "Brad was like the sort of major chemistry, love of your life, kind of, at the time, and then Ben was, like, technically excellent."

There are also a few more under-the-radar relationships Paltrow has under her belt, which we've rounded up ahead.

Robert Sean Leonard

Paltrow dated the stage actor and "House" star for a year in the early '90s, per E! News.

Donovan Leitch Jr.

From 1993 to 1995, Paltrow was linked to actor, singer, and model Donovan Leitch Jr. In 2014, they were spotted sharing a kiss at an LA Dodgers game, though Leitch Jr. later told Daily Mail "that was purely innocent." He added, "We were sitting in the owner's box in front of 30,000 people with her two children right next to us. That isn't exactly the setting for a secret liaison."

Brad Pitt

Paltrow dated Pitt between 1994 and 1997 after they met on the set of the 1995 thriller "Se7en." Their relationship was extremely public, with Pitt proposing in 1996 and referring to Paltrow as his "angel" and "the love of my life" in his speech at the Golden Globes that same year.

They called off their engagement seven months after he proposed. In January 2015, Paltrow filled Howard Stern in on some details about their relationship, saying, "I definitely fell in love with him. He was so gorgeous and sweet. I mean, he was Brad Pitt! My father was devastated [when we split]." She went on, "I was such a kid; I was 22 when we met. It's taken me until 40 to get my head out of my ass. You can't make that decision when you're 22 years old . . . I wasn't ready, and he was too good for me."

Ben Affleck

Paltrow started another A-list romance with Affleck; they dated on and off from 1997 to late 2000 and even shared the screen together in both "Shakespeare in Love" and "Bounce," where they played love interests.

Chris Heinz

After her split from Affleck, Paltrow took up with ketchup heir Chris Heinz, according to ABC News, though not much is known about their romance.

Luke Wilson

The pair struck up a romance in 2001 after working together on "The Royal Tenenbaums." Their relationship lasted for a year, according to E! News.

Chris Martin

Paltrow and Martin met in 2002 backstage at one of his concerts, just three weeks after the death of her father, Bruce Paltrow. They began dating and tied the knot a year later. In 2004, they welcomed daughter Apple, followed by son Moses, who was born in 2006. After 10 years of marriage, Paltrow announced their "conscious uncoupling" in March 2014. The couple have remained close while coparenting their children.

Brad Flachuk

Paltrow first met Falchuk, an Emmy-winning writer, in 2014 when she was guest-starring on the popular series "Glee," which he cocreated with Ryan Murphy. They didn't go public with their romance until the following year when they were spotted on a romantic getaway together in Italy. Things turned serious for the couple in November 2017, when it was revealed that they got engaged. A year later, the two got married in the Hamptons in September 2018.