Gwyneth Paltrow's kids say mom was 'in shock and pain' after ski collision in courtroom testimony

Depositions from Gwyneth Paltrow's two children were read aloud in court on Tuesday as part of a lawsuit where the actor and Goop founder is accused of crashing into a man on a ski slope in 2016 and causing him serious injuries.

Paltrow’s children, daughter Apple Martin, 18, and son Moses Martin, 16, were initially scheduled to give evidence in-person on the stand, but their statements were read instead by defense attorneys due to time constraints for the eight-day trial, according to Paltrow's attorney Stephen Owens.

Moses Martin, who was 9 years old at the time of the incident at the center of the trial, said in his deposition he "briefly saw the collision" at the Deer Valley Ski Resort on Feb. 26, 2016.

"When I skied over, I heard my mom yelling at the guy," Moses said, after realizing his mother was involved in the collision. "She was saying something along the lines of, 'What the F-word. You just ran into me.'"

Apple Martin said in her deposition she was 11 or 12 years old at the time, and that she did not see the collision but heard a woman's scream behind her. “I did hear some commotion but I was further down, so I decided to continue to go down to the lodge,” she said.

Apple shared she learned her mother was involved in the crash when Paltrow met up with her family for lunch.

“My mom told me," Apple said. "I noticed she looked a bit shocked, and I asked what had happened, and she said, 'This A-hole ran into me. He ran right into my back.' And I remember she did this motion saying he ran into her back and they both went down. I remember that’s what she said."

Apple added she had "never seen (her) mom shaken up like that," adding she was visibly upset and in pain.

"She was in a state of shock," Apple continued. "She decided after that she was not going to ski for the rest of the day, which she never does — she always stays on. But she decided to get off because she was in shock and she was in a bit of pain, and I remember that’s why she went to the spa to get a massage."

Paltrow, 50, is being sued for $300,000 by retired optometrist Terry Sanderson, who alleges Paltrow "skied out of control" and hit him in the back, "knocking him down hard, knocking him out, and causing a brain injury, four broken ribs and other serious injuries," according to court documents.

Sanderson, 76, testified there was nothing in front of him that day on the slopes and that Paltrow hit him from behind.

"I just remember everything was great, and then I heard something I’ve never heard at a ski resort. It was like somebody was out of control and hit a tree and was going to die, and that’s what I had until I was hit," Sanderson said in court.

Sanderson initially sued for $3.1 million in damages, but a judge later ruled he could only sue for $300,000.

Paltrow denies being at fault in the accident, and alleges in a counterclaim Sanderson’s suit was an "attempt to exploit her celebrity and wealth."

Sanderson denied those claims. At a news conference in 2019, per the Salt Lake City Tribune, Sanderson’s attorneys, Lawrence D. Buhler and Robert B. Sykes, brought up a Summit County ordinance prohibiting “reckless skiing," saying the law “even applies to celebrities.”

The actor is countersuing for $1 in symbolic damages, plus costs and attorneys’ fees, according to the counterclaim.

Paltrow maintained it was Sanderson who struck her from behind during her courtroom testimony.

She testified she realized something was wrong when "two skis came between my skis forcing my legs apart and then a body pressed against me … My brain was trying to make sense of what is happening.

"I thought, 'Is this a practical joke? Is someone doing something perverted?' My mind was going very, very quickly, and my mind was trying to ascertain what happened," she continued.

Paltrow also cheekily apologized for her "bad language" that day, as noted in Moses and Apple's depositions, saying she was "pretty upset."

Apple, 18, and Moses, 16, whom Paltrow shares with ex-husband Chris Martin, were at the slopes that day along with her then-boyfriend and now-husband Brad Falchuk and his two children.

Paltrow said during her testimony the 2016 ski trip was "significant" for her family.

"It was the first time Brad and I were introducing our kids and doing something together to see if we could blend families," she said.

Falchuk is expected to testify before closing arguments begin on Thursdsay.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com