Inside Their SURPRISING FRIENDSHIP
Bound by their romantic connection to Chris Martin, actresses Gwyneth and Dakota actually adore each other
Being friendly with your ex is hard. Befriending your former lover’s significant other is harder — unless you’re Gwyneth Paltrow. In August, the
Goop founder went on a Hamptons double date (right) with her husband, Brad Falchuk, her ex Chris
Martin and Martin’s GF, Dakota Johnson. An onlooker at the beach told Us, “There didn’t seem to be any weirdness. They all looked very comfortable with each other.”
More recently, Paltrow, 47, proved yet again how well she’s mastered the art of conscious uncoupling by posting a sweet photo of Johnson on her Instagram feed. “Happy birthday to this absolute gem,” she wrote in the caption.
Johnson, 30, and Paltrow’s ex-husband, Coldplay frontman Martin, 42, have been dating for two years, including a brief split this summer. (They parted ways in June, but rekindled their romance in August.) In fact, “Gwyneth is the one who pushed them to get back together after they broke up,” a source tells
During the span of Dakota and Chris’ relationship, the two actresses have grown shockingly close. “Gwyneth loves Dakota, and vice versa,” another insider tells
noting that Paltrow
Us,
Us. understands that anyone who makes her ex-husband’s life better will also make her kids’ lives better — and in this case, she believes that person is Johnson.
“Gwyneth really cares deeply for him and wants him to be happy,” the insider adds, “and it goes both ways.”
THE FAB FOUR
Granted, it helps that Paltrow’s found love again
too. She and Glee cocreator Falchuk, 48, tied the knot in September 2018, and his addition to her family — she shares custody of kids Apple, 15, and Moses, 13, with Martin, and Falchuk has two kids of his own — has made coparenting better for everyone.
“Brad and Chris have a lot of respect for each other and they always get their creative juices flowing when they hang out,” says the source. “They get something from being together — they’re both very cool guys.”
The foursome also make the holidays — a stressful time of year for even the most conventional of families — more enjoyable. Last year, Johnson and Falchuk reportedly spent Thanksgiving with Paltrow, Martin and their two teens. “It’s not without effort and having to put feelings aside from time to time,” says the insider, but “they genuinely enjoy being together. There’s a lot of love for one another on all sides.”