Gwyneth Paltrow thinks she's been "really lucky" in her career

Speaking to Variety, the Oscar-winning actress explained: "I got really lucky.

"Paul Thomas Anderson had never made a movie [before Hard Eight]. There were a lot of firsts and directors I got in their early careers. Wes, for example, I was almost in Rushmore, but it didn't work out.

"I was very excited to be in The Royal Tenenbaums with that amazing cast."

Gwyneth played Margot Tenenbaum in The Royal Tenenbaums, the 2001 comedy-drama film, and she still has find memories of making the hit movie.

On the other hand, Gwyneth acknowledged that she's made some bad career choices, too.

The movie star said: "She defined a certain genre of cool girl - disaffected, smoking in the bathtub, writing a play. It's amazing.

"But I also made a bunch of weird choices, too, and some not-so-good movies."

Gwyneth also observed that acting can easily become "work", rather than fun, for actors and actresses.

She shared: "What's so interesting about being an artist is that you feel lucky enough to make a living at your art, your passion, but it can become work."

Meanwhile, Gwyneth previously admitted that she achieved most of her acting ambitions before she turned 30.

The award-winning actress has largely focused her attention on her Goop lifestyle brand in recent years, and Gwyneth confessed that she "doesn't love acting that much".

The movie star - who is the daughter of filmmaker Bruce Paltrow and actress Blythe Danner - told SiriusXM: "I think that when you hit the bullseye when you're 26 years old, and you're a metrics-driven person - who, frankly, doesn't love acting that much, as it turns out ... I sort of felt like, well, now, who am I supposed to be? What am I driving towards?"