Ryan Gosling addresses Barbie casting backlash: ‘There are many other Kens to play with’

The actor defends his role, saying the character’s story ‘needed to be told’
Ryan Gosling addresses backlash over being cast as Ken in Barbie movie
Gregory Harris/GQ
Lisa McLoughlin 31 May 2023
The Weekender

Sign up to our free weekly newsletter for exclusive competitions, offers and theatre ticket deals

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

Ryan Gosling has addressed the backlash he received when his casting in the highly anticipated film, Barbie, was revealed.

At the time, younger fans weren’t convinced by his involvement and claimed the 42-year-old actor was “too old” to play Ken opposite Margot Robbie’s Barbie.

Now in a new interview with British GQ, the Oscar-nominated actor laughed off the social media outrage, joking that “nobody cared about Ken” until his casting.

The Hollywood star shared: “I would say, you know, if people don’t want to play with my Ken, there are many other Kens to play with.

“It is funny… this kind of clutching-your-pearls idea of, like, #notmyken. Like you ever thought about Ken before this?... But suddenly, it’s like, ‘No, we’ve cared about Ken this whole time.’

“No, you didn’t. You never did. You never cared. Barbie never f***ed with Ken. That’s the point. If you ever really cared about Ken, you would know that nobody cared about Ken.

Ryan Gosling in GQ
Gosling is GQ’s global summer issue cover star
Gregory Harris/GQ

“So your hypocrisy is exposed. This is why his story must be told.”

While Gosling made light of the social media commentary, he said he was inspired to take on the role after watching his daughters with partner Eva Mendes play with their own Barbie and Ken.

He quipped: “I did see him, like, face down in the mud outside one day, next to a squished lemon and it was like, ‘This guy’s story does need to be told’, you know?”

Gregory Harris/GQ
He said he was inspired to do the movie after seeing his daughters play with Barbie and Ken
RyanGoslingGQ310523

Aside from poking fun at Ken ahead of Barbie’s release, he earnestly admitted that he found a connection between his childhood self and Ken’s “no-thoughts-just-vibes” character.

The Canadian actor shared: “There’s something about this Ken that really, I think, relates to that version of myself.

“Just, like, the guy that was putting on Hammer pants and dancing at the mall and smelling like Drakkar Noir and Aqua Net-ing bangs. I owe that kid a lot. I feel like I was very quick to distance myself from him when I started making more serious films.

Barbie trailer reveals first look at Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling as Barbie and Ken with acting icon Helen Mirren as narrator
Gosling stars as Ken in the upcoming film
Warner Bros

“But the reality is that, like, he’s the reason I have everything I have.”

The summer issue of British GQ is available via digital download and on newsstands on the 13th June.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in