Gwyneth Paltrow takes the stand in ski crash trial, gets compared to Taylor Swift
Gwyneth Paltrow testified Friday afternoon that it didn’t occur to her to ask the man she collided with on a Utah ski slope if he was OK.
“I think you have to keep in mind when you’re the victim of a crash, right, your psychology is not necessarily thinking about the person who perpetrated it,” the actor and Goop founder said on the stand.
Paltrow is being sued for slamming into Terry Sanderson while they were on a ski slope at Deer Valley Resort in 2016. The retired optometrist said in a 2019 lawsuit filing he was left “seriously injured” by an “out of control” Paltrow, according to ABC News.
Jurors heard Wednesday the 76-year-old man “deteriorated abruptly” due to his wounds, which included a brain injury and broken ribs. He’s asking for $300,000.
Paltrow, however, blames the collision on Sanderson, who she accused of exploiting her wealth and status. She told the court she feels “very sorry for” the plaintiff.
“It seems like he’s had a very difficult life, but I did not cause the accident,” Paltrow testified.
Attorneys also brought up the topic of Paltrow filing a $1 “symbolic” counterclaim against Sanderson. It was the same move made by Taylor Swift in 2017 when a radio DJ claimed the singer tried to get him fired after he allegedly groped her.
Sanderson’s attorney asked if Paltrow had been influenced by Swift’s countersuit, which she won, and asked if they were friends.
“I would not say we’re good friends,” Paltrow told the court. “We are friendly. I’ve taken my kids to one of her concerts before, but we don’t talk very often.”
Friday’s testimony concluded at 5 p.m. local time and will resume Monday.
This isn’t the first time Paltrow has faced legal trouble. In 2021, her Goop lifestyle company was sued by a man in Texas who claimed the brand’s $75 “This Smells Like My Vagina” exploded, causing a room to fill with smoke. Goop’s lawyers called the $5-million lawsuit a “frivolous” effort targeting “an outsized payout from a press-heavy product.”