Gwyneth Paltrow has made her return to Hollywood, shedding light on her reasons for stepping back, what lured her back, and how becoming an empty nester unexpectedly ushered in a new phase of her life.

After a hiatus of nearly seven years from acting—and over 15 years since her last significant film appearance—the creator of Goop is set to make a triumphant comeback with the film Marty Supreme. According to Paltrow, taking a break wasn’t merely a choice, but an essential one.

In a conversation with Jacob Elordi for Variety Actors on Actors, published on December 9, she revealed, “Back in my 20s, acting left me feeling quite isolated. I hadn’t fully discovered myself and was constantly on the move. I needed time to mature and truly understand who I was, and my family played a big role in that journey. Eventually, I ventured into business.”

Paltrow is a mother to daughter Apple, 21, and son Moses, 19, with her former spouse Chris Martin. She is also a stepmother to her current husband Brad Falchuk’s children, Izzy, 21, and Brody, 18. With all four now attending college or having embarked on adult life, she faced an unexpected shift in her sense of self.

“The opportunity for Marty Supreme came at a remarkable moment, right as our sons were heading to college, leaving me in a state of shock and introspection,” she noted. “I found myself asking, ‘Who am I now?’ Meeting Josh Safdie felt like a sign that this project was worth pursuing, reminiscent of the films we made in the ‘90s.”

And while fans may assume Gwyneth was itching to get back in front of a camera, she insists that wasn’t the case.

“If I’m being completely honest, it’s not that the acting bug had bit,” she told The Hollywood Reporter earlier this month. “My children, all four of them, had left.”

Running Goop kept her plenty busy, but the 53-year-old said a deeper emotional shift hit her once the kids were gone. “I started to have a real panic around my purpose,” she admitted, “and where I’m supposed to orient myself.”

As she put it, “‘Where do I want to live? Who am I? It was pretty profound.’”

Still, the spark eventually returned the moment she stepped on set again.

“I was like, ‘Oh, what is this weird feeling I’m having?’” she recalled of her first day on Marty Supreme. “Oh my God, this is excitement. I’m actually really excited to be here.”