A few new details are emerging about an instantly viral ad with Gwyneth Paltrow from Astronomer — the tech company whose executives were caught on camera while wrapped in each other’s arms at a Coldplay concert earlier this month.
In the days immediately after CEO Andy Byron and Kristin Cabot, the chief people officer, were seen together (and playfully singled out from the stage by Coldplay’s lead singer, Chris Martin, who is Paltrow’s ex), Astronomer was thrust into the spotlight.
Byron and Cabot, who appeared mortified to have been spotted publicly and who have not commented on their relationship, both resigned.
Paltrow, 52, tweaked all of the attention Astronomer was getting when she appeared in a tongue-in-cheek ad that the company released on Friday, July 25.
“I’ve been hired on a very temporary basis to speak on behalf of the 300-plus employees at Astronomer,” Paltrow says in the video, which has been seen millions of times.
She goes on to add, “We’ve been thrilled so many people have a newfound interest in data workflow automation.”
Behind the scenes, says an insider, the entire project happened fast — and its tone was part of what appealed to the actress and Goop founder.
“It came together very quickly,” the source tells PEOPLE of the ad. “The company reached out to her.”
“Gwyneth has a really great sense of humor and it felt funny enough for her to do,” the source explains. “It happened quickly.”
(An Astronomer spokesperson declined to comment further about the commercial, beyond the video.)
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There is another A-list connection: Ryan Reynolds’ Maximum Effort worked on the ad, the company said on social media.
Maximum Effort also collaborated on a similarly sardonic ad in 2021, made in response to Chris Noth’s character dying on And Just Like That…
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