Right after this year’s Oscars, we reported there was heavy speculation that Slumdog Millionaire beauty Freida Pinto would be tapped to be the next “face” of Estee Lauder. Soon after the speculation, a deal was sort of announced. Freida will be picking up a hefty paycheck to represent the brand, but no advertisements have been shot yet. My guess is that Freida’s reign will most likely begin either this fall or next year.
Estee Lauder usually has several celebrities and models representing the brand for various specific lines. Gwyneth “The Goop” Paltrow is one of Estee Lauder’s “faces”, and she almost exclusively promotes the Estee Lauder line of perfume, Pure White Linen. Her ads are nothing special, in my opinion. Just Goop looking smug and air-brushed, always in white.
Now it seems that Gwyneth feels this young upstart might steal her goopy thunder at Estee Lauder. The Daily Mail is reporting that Gwyneth is “terrified” that Freida will end up with Gwyneth’s contract, and that Gwyneth will be shoved aside, forgotten.
Gwyneth Paltrow is terrified that upcoming Indian actress Freida Pinto is about to steal the jewel in her sponsorship crown – her £1million-a-year contract with Estee Lauder.
The Hollywood Oscar-winner is quite the canny entrepreneur, having endorsed a range of DVDs and gyms. And in 2005 she replaced Elizabeth Hurley as the younger, fresher face of Estee Lauder cosmetics.
Now she fears that Slumdog Millionaire star Freida is about to supplant her.
‘Gwyneth makes millions through her sponsorship deals and it’s her commercial work that’s keeping her rich,’ says a source.
‘The news that Estee Lauder is in talks with Freida caught her by complete surprise.
‘Losing the Estee Lauder deal would be a huge blow to Gwyneth.’‘She’s waiting for an exact outline of what Freida will be doing for the brand and hoping she won’t be sidelined.’
From The Daily Mail
Not to defend The Goop or anything, but I really doubt this. Gwyneth is more than just the “face” of Estee Lauder, she’s good friends with Aerin Lauder, who is some sort of big-time executive in her grandmother’s company. Aerin would probably never fire her little goopy buddy.
Gwyneth Paltrow is shown out in Santa Monica on 3/23/09 with son Moses and daughter Apple. Freida Pinto is shown at Paris Fashion Week on 3/10/09. Credit: WENN.com. Pure White Linen ad via BellaSugar
Why don’t actors/actresses just focus on acting and leave this nonsense to models? It can’t help their craft to be fixated on endorsements. Of course, models should also stop trying to act as well!
An upgrade!
It’s extrtemely unlikely this would happen as women of colour require vastly different makeup to caucasian women. Plain common sense dictates Pinto could not replace Paltrow. It seems to me someone at the papers is making a fuss about nothing on a slow news day.
As much as I don’t particularly like or think that Gwyneth Paltrow is any kind of attractive, she is a famous actress and an Oscar winner with a lot of movies behind her belt, while Freida Pinto has done one movie and can be pearly called a real celebrity and for her to represent Estee Lauder in a global scale is kind of pointless.
They should replace her. Their models should be attractive, which the Goopster is NOT. Pinto is lovely and would be a far superior choice.
Ordinarily, I hate when an older actress/model is fired for being “too old” (the gorgeous Isabella Rossellini lost her make-up contract at 40), but for Gwyneth, I’ll make an exception. She is beyond plain and I’d love to see more diversity at Estee Lauder.
Interesting. I think we have seen the end of the Super Model. Actresses are now getting the mag covers and the cosmetics endorsements. I can’t even name a model who is around not. Other then the swimsuit and Victoria Secret ads they are not that big any more. Freida is a pretty girl. She is what 24. But I don’t see her having big impact. Slum-dog did well at the awards, but they seem to really be pushing her on the public. I don’t know if mainstream will buy into it. I could be wrong. But to Gwenny I don’t find her beautiful at all. She is average at best. She is trying too hard to be a fashion icon.. Katie Holmes, Anne Hathaway too. They all get on my last nerve. None of them would make me want to use or buy a product. But then they are marketing to the average woman. These women are not threats and so they figure the average woman will relate to them.
The only reason Goop’s always been held up by Hollywood and the media as an example of “classic beauty” is because she’s tall, blonde-haired, and blue-eyed. To me, though, she’s just another perfect example of how a LOT of work — regular facials, professional make-up and hair styling, really expensive clothes — can make ANYone beautiful.
Not sure where the ‘replace’ bit is coming from, Estee Lauder currently has more than one ‘face’ – Gwynnie was contracted in 2005, Carolyn Murphy and Hilary Rhoda in 2007. All three are described, depending where you look and what you read, as ‘faces’ and ‘spokesmodels’ for the brand. Frieda would just be another ‘face’. (Maybe they told Goopy she was their primary face, just to keep her happy.)
Maybe Gwen should just STFU and go out and make a hit movie so people will remember her for more than just being a grump who thinks people should pay 5K a day to work out for 5 hours.
It is better to have actresses rather than models.
Actresses add additional values, qualities and have talent and a “real” career.
They are better from a marketing perspective.
They are also better role models than models.
There will always be room for the “older” actresses since the customers that are more able to pay the higher prices are older women as opposed to younger women in their early twenties.
However, I think people had enough from the Goop. Her last film performances were lacking in talent and annoying.
They should let GP go, but they would still need another actress in her 30s.
Who are Gwyneth Paltrow’s fans? Does she even have any? I think EL would get more bang for their buck going with the younger, prettier, more current “celebrity”.
Pinto is so pretty and has a fresh face, Kind of nice not to have to look at the same stale face all the time
I like anonymous, beautiful women in cosmetic ads. The kind that make me think “damn, she’s pretty” rather than being slapped in the face by the likes of Gwyneth Paltrow or whomever just because she’s famous. Gwyn is hardly my idea of what I’d like to look like.
I love GP’s fashion style, or I guess I should say I love the clothing her stylist picks for her to wear. 😉
Back to topic:
Don’t all of these campaigns have a contract? Meaning, if she’s in a contract, no one can literally “replace” her until her contract is up. Even if they did go with Freida (which would be awesome) GP still has her other contracts with Tod’s and I forget who else. She can’t expect to lock down everything. People will grow to be tired of seeing her face. Some are already there. Lol.
Give the new, up and coming women a chance.
I think she’s a little pissed someone younger is coming around. I’m sure they can both share the spotlight. Many companies use a few women for their campaign, why make this one an exception? She needs to worry about saving her Goop because that’s just a joke.
Team Freida here! She has class!!!!
Strange – I could have sworn that Carolyn Murphy replaced Elizabeth Hurley in around 2004/2005 on the cosmetics line; whilst EH kept some of the fragrance lines for a while.
It’s probable that Pinto is in talks with EL and others, but I doubt it’ll be a straight swap for GP.
i think it’s gwoopeth’s sense of entitlement that irks me, that and the affected way she has of speaking. she is pretty but in a vapid, bland sort of way. frieda is gorgeous and it would be nice for “the face” of EL to be one of color. also, on a selfish and juvenile note, i would like to see something taken away from gwoopy. am i a bad person? 😉
I think pigment-deficient Gwyneth is the perfect choice for Pure White Linen, and will get to keep that particular gig.
Given that Pinto dumped her husband of many years once she got her big Hollywood break, I don’t think I’ll ever consider her a “class act”.
Look at those two pictures. GP should be worried; Frida is lovely beyong words.
while i have recently been finding GP more annoying than anything i don’t think anyone can deny she is an attractive woman. she reminds me of my mom so i may be slightly biased, but frida is absolutely breathtaking
i download her image which in this blog on my computer what a great images i get happy when i look them