If you’ve followed the marketing for Barbie, you know Ken is playing quite the featured role in the film.
Taking on the role of our lead Ken is Ryan Gosling, the actor best known for his work in The Notebook, Drive, and La La Land. Now he’ll tackle one of pop culture’s most iconic dolls…sidekick…and he is very passionate about making this all work.
But it wasn’t always like that, as the actor opens up to GQ Magazine about first being approached to star in the Greta Gerwig-helmed Barbie film.
At first, Gosling was confused about Ken’s role in the film and pop culture: “Ken, his job is beach. For 60 years, his job has been beach. What the fuck does that even mean?”
The actor wants to see Ken treated fairly. He recalls seeing his daughters disregarding the doll to play with Barbie instead. “I did see him, like, face down in the mud outside one day, next to a squished lemon,” Gosling says, “and it was like, This guy’s story does need to be told, you know?”
As for anyone who doesn’t like Gosling in the role, or even the Ken character being featured so heavily in Barbie, the actor doesn’t mince words. The actor goes off as he tells GQ: “Like you ever thought about Ken before this? If you ever really cared about Ken, you would know nobody cared about Ken.” He reiterates, “So your hypocrisy is exposed. This is why his story must be told.”
He adds, “I would say, you know, if people don’t want to play with my Ken, there are many other Kens to play with.”
It seems like Ryan Gosling is very passionate about the iconic toy, and we’ll see if that passion pays off when Barbie opens in cinemas this July.
Directed by Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird, Little Women), the Barbie movie sees Robbie and Gosling’s iconic toy couple joined by a bumper cast that includes Will Ferrell (Step Brothers), Simu Liu (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings), Kate McKinnon (Bombshell), America Ferrera (Superstore), Ariana Greenblatt (Love and Monsters), Emma Mackey (Sex Education), Alexandra Shipp (tick, tick… BOOM!), Issa Rae (The Lovebirds), Michael Cera (Arrested Development), Hari Nef (And Just Like That…), Kingsley Ben-Adir (One Night in Miami), Rhea Perlman (Cheers), Ncuti Gatwa (Sex Education), Emerald Fennell (The Crown), Sharon Rooney (The Electrical Life of Louis Wain), Scott Evans (Grace and Frankie), Ana Cruz Kayne (Little Women), Connor Swindells (Sex Education), Ritu Arya (The Umbrella Academy), Jamie Demetriou (Fleabag) and Helen Mirren (Shazam! Fury of the Gods).
Barbie is set for release on July 21st, 2023.
