Gwyneth Paltrow and her brother, Jake Paltrow, hail from one of the most beloved dynasties in Hollywood.
Their father, Bruce Paltrow, was a famous filmmaker, while their mother, Blythe Danner, is an Emmy award-winning actress. Gwyneth and Jake's parents were married for 32 years until Bruce’s death in 2002.
Born on Sept. 26, 1975, Jake is the younger of the Paltrow siblings. He followed Gwyneth, who was born on Sept. 27, 1972.
Compared to his super-famous sister, Jake lives a relatively private life with his wife, Taryn Simon, and their two children. While Gwyneth doesn’t publicly speak about her brother often, she has shared sweet anecdotes from their childhood.
During her 2023 civil court case in Utah, the Goop founder recounted the many family ski trips their late father made a point of taking her and Jake on as kids.
"He loved skiing and he had learned later in life, and so he was determined for my brother and I to learn how to ski when we were young," she said during her testimony. "He used to do these really sweet one-on-one ski trips with us where he would take us to various destinations."
Here’s everything to know about Gwyneth Paltrow’s brother, Jake Paltrow.
They grew up in Los Angeles and New York City Jake Paltrow, Blythe Danner, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Bruce Paltrow attend "The Prince of Tides" Century City Premiere on December 11, 1991.Ron Gallela, Ltd./Getty
When Jake was 7 years old, his family left Los Angeles for the opposite U.S. coast. He and Gwyenth were raised in New York City’s Upper East Side neighborhood, where their parents owned a five-story townhouse.
In an interview with Cinephiled ahead of the release of his 2014 movie Young Ones, Jake discussed the impact of growing up in a creative family, and whether the entertainment industry was one he'd always known he would enter.
"I think my interests were always skewed towards this world, but I was very into special effects as a kid. I wanted to be a creature creator, working with Rick Baker or Dick Smith," he told the outlet.
Gwyneth has also talked about her childhood in N.Y.C., admitting to Interview Magazine in 2021 that growing up in the Big Apple meant a different experience as a teenager.
“One of the downsides of growing up in New York is that it’s very erudite and sophisticated, so you don’t really get to immerse yourself in Americana and enjoy it as much as other teenagers do," she said.
He’s an actor, writer and director Gwyneth Paltrow and Jake Paltrow.George Pimentel/WireImage
While Gwyneth is known for her acting chops, Jake has carved a name out for himself as a film writer, director and producer. However, he did star in the 2010 film Greenberg before trying his hand at directing.
In 2007, he made his feature film directorial debut with The Good Night. He’s also directed episodes of NYPD Blue and Boardwalk Empire, and went on to write, direct and produce 2014’s Young Ones.
However, one of his most highly regarded projects to date is the film June Zero. The movie — which is in theaters June 28, 2024 and marks Jake's first feature film since his 2015 documentary De Palma — focuses on the experiences of three people during and after the 1961 trial of an officer in Nazi Germany's regime during World War II, Adolf Eichmann. The United States Holocaust Memorial and Museum has described Eichmann — who was executed in 1962 following his trial in Israel — as "among the major organizers of the Holocaust."
In May 2024, the trailer for the movie — which first premiered during film festivals in 2022 and 2023 — was shared exclusively with PEOPLE by Cohen Media Group, while Jake shared a statement at the time discussing how June Zero relates to current times.
"June Zero takes place in Israel over 60 years ago, but connects directly to our present. I think many of us everywhere feel lost and confused in this moment, and in this confusion are too easily divided into We versus They," he wrote in a statement to PEOPLE, adding, "June Zero is our attempt to recognize and resist these patterns of dehumanization. We hope audiences will join us in the dark for some contemplation."
Previously, in a 2022 interview with Variety, the writer and director spoke of his father's interest in the period the movie covers.
"My father was a World War II history obsessive," Jake told the outlet. "Some of my earliest memories of watching television are of The World at War, which later became something we watched together every year. It was all deeply rooted in his Jewishness."
He has collaborated with Gwyneth Gwyneth Paltrow and brother Jake Paltrow attend the 56th Annual Golden Globe Awards on January 24, 1999.Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection/Getty
Not only did The Good Night mark Jake’s feature film directorial debut, but it was also his first time collaborating with sister Gwyneth. The 2007 rom-com is about a musician-turned-commercial jingle composer Gary (played by Martin Freeman), who falls in love with a fictional woman in his dreams (played by Penélope Cruz). This dream relationship puts his real-life partnership (with Gwyneth’s character Dora) at stake.
In a conversation with New York Magazine, Jake admitted that Gwyneth was originally left off the cast list intentionally. By that point, the actress had already become a household name after starring in Great Expectations, Shakespeare in Love and View From The Top, and Jake was more interested in nailing his first big project without the help of his mega-famous relatives.
“I just read it as a sister and a friend,” Gwyneth told the magazine in a joint interview. “But I thought it was really brilliant, and I said, would you ever want me to be in it?”
Long story short, Jake said no, then yes. “But then he got this great cast together and I was like, come on, please?” she added.
“I just felt more secure about it when we had these people,” Jake said of his change of heart.
He and wife Taryn Simon share two kids Jake Paltrow and Taryn Simon attend ICP's 24th Annual Infinity Awards on May 12, 2008 in New York City.Stephen Lovekin/Getty
Jake is married to photographer Taryn Simon, whose work has been featured at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and Whitney Museum of American Art in N.Y.C. The pair share two children, Whistler and Eliel.
Of her sister-in-law, Gwyneth previously told PEOPLE, “I think Taryn’s one of the most talented photographers.”
Jake and Gwyneth's father died in 2002 Jake Paltrow, Gwyneth Paltrow, Bruce Paltrow, and Blythe Danner at the Paris Theater for the premiere of "Emma".Richard Corkery/NY Daily News Archive/Getty
On Oct. 3, 2002, Bruce died from complications resulting from pneumonia after having been diagnosed with throat cancer in 1999. He was 58.
While appearing on the podcast By the Light of the Moon, Gwyneth opened up about losing her father just days after her 30th birthday.
"The first year was just beyond — I don't know how we all got through it, my mother, my brother and I. It was pretty messed up. Anyone will tell you, who loses a love of their life like that, there's just no other way but through," she said on the podcast. "You just try to process your grief and keep going."
Bruce’s work and achievements were a huge motivator for Jake. In an interview with The Daily Courier in 2014, Jake explained how his late father served as a big inspiration for his dystopian film, Young Ones.
"There's a lot of him in it," Jake said of his dad. "He died young and we were very close. Not that it's autobiographical in any way at all, but I think there's a lot of him in that character [Ernest] — his sort of compassionate, tough-guy thing, and that was a big part of the Ernest character.”
"We were very, very close, and so it just was something I started working on and liking the feel of and followed through,” he added.
