Gwyneth Paltrow has faced sharp criticism after starring in a campaign for 51 Park, a luxury residential project in Herzliya, Israel, with penthouses starting at about $10 million. The ad, which appeared last week, shows Paltrow waking up in a high-rise apartment, going for a morning run, and promoting the benefits of living near a park before revealing that the destination is Herzliya, Israel.
According to a source close to the actress who spoke to Page Six, Paltrow has dealt with criticism before over her film career and her lifestyle brand, but this time she was caught off guard. The source said, “Gwyneth has shown before that she is willing to take criticism and learn from it. She is used to taking heat, but she really did not expect reactions like this.”
Among the critics was model and activist Alana Hadid, the half-sister of Bella and Gigi Hadid, who wrote that the campaign was “cruel” and accused Paltrow of “collaboration.” Livia Firth, the former wife of actor Colin Firth, said Paltrow had planned to visit her farm in Italy but that the visit was canceled because her participation in the campaign was “completely unacceptable.” In a video message to Paltrow, Firth asked whether she was “out of touch with reality,” “a really, really nasty person,” or “stupid.”
The ad presents 51 Park as a luxury project overlooking the Herzliya seafront, and the backlash was amplified by social media posts accusing the campaign of helping sell property on land tied to a Palestinian village emptied in 1948. Paltrow has not publicly responded.
