Conscious uncoupling pioneers! Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin’s amicable post-divorce relationship set the blueprint for how to maintain a friendship even after the romance fizzles out.
The Goop founder met Martin in 2002 while his band, Coldplay, was on tour in Los Angeles. In April 2013, Paltrow recalled their unconventional introduction.
“It’s funny because people had started writing that we were going out and we had never even met,” she said during her Iron Man 3 press tour. “And then he was in Los Angeles doing a concert and an actress that he had a crush on was supposed to come to the concert. When she didn’t show up, he was so annoyed that he said, ‘Oh, this is for my girlfriend Gwyneth Paltrow.’”
The Emma star continued, “Then people were saying, ‘What’s going on?’ I was like, ‘I’ve never met this guy, I’ve no idea.’ And because of that, because people were writing about it, we ended up meeting at a concert and there you go. Because they had written so much in the press, his assistant came to my seat at the concert. They said, ‘This is so crazy, but will you come back and say hello afterwards?’ And that was it.”
The duo tied the knot in December 2003 after one year of dating. Paltrow and Martin welcomed their daughter, Apple, in 2004 followed by their son, Moses, in 2006. Although their romance had a fairytale beginning, Paltrow eventually felt her relationship with Martin wasn’t the same. The Shakespeare in Love star detailed her awakening in an essay penned for British Vogue‘s September 2020 issue.
Paltrow explained that her realization occurred during a trip to Italy she and Martin took in 2010 — four years before they announced their divorce.
“I don’t remember which day of the weekend it was or the time of day,” she wrote. ”But I knew – despite long walks and longer lie-ins, big glasses of Barolo and hands held – my marriage was over.”
Paltrow announced her split — which she labeled “conscious uncoupling” — from the “Fix You” singer in 2014. Their divorce was finalized two years later.
The friendly exes have remained on good terms even after they both moved on from the relationship. Martin began dating Dakota Johnson in 2017 and Paltrow married Brad Falchuk in 2018. The Shallow Hal actress explained in her essay for British Vogue that she never forgot her favorite qualities about Martin, which helped them have a healthy breakup.
“It’s OK to stay in love with the parts of your ex that you were always in love with,” Paltrow said. “In fact, that’s what makes conscious uncoupling work. Love all of those wonderful parts of them.”
Scroll down for a look at Paltrow and Martin’s friendship after their divorce.