Healing exorcisms, cold therapy and intense contemplation of your vulva are just a few of the topics touched on in the first trailer for Netflix‘s The Goop Lab — the docu-series hosted by Gwyneth Paltrow dropping at the end of January. If Doctor Pimple Popper or that scary TLC show about feet are a bit too intense for you, but you still want to enjoy a health-adjacent show that isn’t afraid to Get Weird™, this one might just be your new obsession.
As previously reported, the series will feature Paltrow, Goop’s editorial team and their chief content officer, Elise Loehnen, as they explore the funky, new age and off-beat treatments, therapies and practices in the mental, physical, spiritual and sexual health space. In an interview with Variety, Loehnen explained why Paltrow was excited to explore the new medium for the brand: “Gwyneth is a highly visual, tactile person. The quality of everything that we produce is very important to her. She’s always looking for white space. Whether it’s developing physical products or thinking of content. With this show, I think she’s only really interested in opportunities where we can uniquely be ourselves and do things potentially disruptive.”
And, judging by the trailer, where Paltrow asks her team if they’re ready to “make a ruckus,” there’s plenty of room for disruption. From the opening frames, there’s women giggling about an orgasm workshop, there’s Loehnen chilling with a face full of acupuncture needles, there’s a discussion of psychic mediums and encouragement about taking a look at your vulva — supported and made a whole lot less intimidating by the not-totally-sure but game-to-try energy of its hosts.
As a wellness brand, Goop isn’t without its scandals and critiques. Often associated with new age-y, extreme and alternative medicine (and dubious claims about the benefits of the products they recommend), they’ve spent the last few years bringing things like coffee enemas (yes, really) and jade yoni eggs (oof) into the cultural consciousness — for better or worse. Truth in Advertising, a nonprofit dedicated to monitoring claims made by brands, has followed the saga of Goop’s fraught approach to health and wellness recommendations, including a $145,000 settlement over claims about the aforementioned jade yoni eggs. They note that they anticipate there being a hefty disclaimer about the science behind any claims made and encourage viewers to be mindful of fact-checking (or a lack-thereof) throughout the series.
While we’re never in the business of recommending you make important personal health decisions based on a TV show or a celebrity’s influence (please don’t do that!), we have to admit that this side of wellness culture — bizarre and sometimes cringe-y as it can be — is just such a fun rabbit hole to go down.
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