Ruth Jones has claimed that Gwyneth Paltrow acted “dismissively” towards her on the set of Emma, and asked for one of her two lines to be cut.
Early on in her career, Jones had a small part in the 1996 period comedy, which starred Paltrow as the titular Jane Austen character.
Speaking to her Gavin & Stacey co-star Rob Brydon on his Brydon & podcast, Ruth recalled: “I had two lines. I had to announce Gwyneth Paltrow and say, ‘Miss Woodhouse is here’. And then I had to say ‘Goodbye Miss Woodhouse’ at the exit and let her out.”
However, Jones claimed that Gwyneth had one of those lines cut, revealing: “She said, ‘Does she really need to say that, can I just come in?’.
“Imagine this for people who are starting out? You’ve got two lines, and someone cut 50 per cent of your script. It’s heartbreaking.”
Jones claimed she tried to engage with Paltrow in conversation behind the scenes, only for the Oscar winner to apparently act “dismissively” towards her.
Jones previously made headlines when she and James Corden announced they were teaming up once again for one final episode Gavin & Stacey, which is set to air this Christmas.
The writer and actress had previously dismissed rumours of a reunion in February, telling Irish radio station RTE Radio 1: “All I can say is, if there was something to say on that front, James and I would happily announce it, we would.”
However, the Christmas special has since been confirmed, and in an interview with BBC Radio Four last month, Jones admitted she was upset about the news getting out early, as it meant she had to “lie” but publicly and in private about the return of Gavin & Stacey.
The sitcom, which ran for three seasons, followed the lives and close family relationships of a married couple, who met online despite one of them living in Barry in Wales and the other in Billericay, Essex.
Gavin & Stacey won several awards, including a BAFTA Audience Award. In 2019, it was named by Radio Times as 17th-greatest British sitcom.
The 2019 Christmas special aired on BBC One, and gathered nearly 18.5million viewers – making the broadcast the most viewed non-sporting event in the UK in a decade and the most-watched comedy in 17 years.
The special ended with a cliffhanger marriage proposal from Jones’ character Nessa, to Corden’s character Smithy. As per the BBC, Jones has shared that the answer may never be unveiled.
“I quite like the idea of it just lingering there and us wondering, ‘What did she say? Are they together?’” said the Welsh actor.
She added on her character’s progression: “I think she’s still working down the slots, probably coaching the Welsh rugby team, because she’s very good at that.”