Gwyneth Paltrow sparks backlash after adding Stan Lee tribute to Instagram advert

Gwyneth Paltrow has been criticised for her tribute to Stan Lee, which has been widely deemed tone-deaf.

The actor attempted to honour the late Marvel co-creator in an Instagram post in which she originally advertised a dress sold by her lifestyle company Goop.

Lee died on Monday at the age of 95. He co-created many of Marvel's best-known superheroes, including Iron Man and his love interest Pepper Potts, who is played by Paltrow on the big screen.

The actor's Instagram post, which now appears to have been deleted from her account, consisted of a photo of herself with Chris Pratt, also known as Peter Quill/Star-Lord in the Marvel Universe.

In her caption, she explained the dress was now on sale and directed her followers to Goop's website to purchase it.

Paltrow apparently heard about Lee's passing after sharing the ad.

While many celebrities, especially those who have starred in Marvel movies, created new posts to honour Lee, Paltrow added an update onto her publication dedicated to the dress.

"UPDATE: I just heard about Stan Lee, he will be so missed," she wrote.

"What a genius, and always so lovely. True gentleman."

The post has disappeared from Paltrow's Instagram grid, and she has so far not shared a new tribute to Lee.

Social media users, however, have grabbed screenshots of the publication and shared them along with comments making fun of Paltrow's homage.

"Such an emotional and heartfelt tribute to Stan Lee by Gwyneth Paltrow," one person wrote ironically.

Someone else shared a humorous poem that reads: "Do not mourn me when I'm gone / Be happy and sing a joyous song / For I am happy and at rest /As an update on Gwyneth’s dress."