This story has been updated since it was originally published on June 28, 2022.
Every beautiful Barbie needs her equally beautiful Ken—and Ryan Gosling is the perfect man to fill the role and stand alongside Margot Robbie in Greta Gerwig’s upcoming film. Fans were able to get a rare glimpse of both of their jaw-dropping transformations when new photos of the pair on set in Los Angeles were released last week.
There’s good news and bad news. The bad news is that Gerwig’s Barbie film isn’t set to hit theaters until over a year from now, on July 21, 2023. The good news is that the cast is hot, so fans absolutely have something to look forward to, especially when it comes to heartthrob Ryan Gosling, who will be playing the love interest of the titular character.
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In the newest photos, Gosling and Robbie are both dressed in full Wild West garb—with a Barbie twist, of course. Robbie makes a gorgeous cowgirl-Barbie, just as one would expect with her bleached blonde hair and hot pink getup. The ‘fit is even complete with a matching ascot and a white hat. Beside her, though, Gosling may just steal the show. He’s wearing a black shirt with white fringe and detailing, flared black pants, and white cowboy boots. Of course, Ken also has his own white hat and pink ascot to match Barbie as perfectly as possible.
margot robbie & ryan gosling on the set of barbie oh I’m obsessed pic.twitter.com/dyDWpvl5r1
— joe (@mcumagik) June 23, 2022
The first image of Gosling as Ken broke the internet on June 19 when Warner Bros. shared it across their social media accounts. In the photo, the La La Land star looks just like the Ken doll we all know and love: he has tanned (more like orange) skin, bleached blonde hair, and rock-hard abs. Gosling is wearing a light-wash denim vest with nothing underneath and matching low-rise jeans that expose his “Ken”-labeled underpants. Okay, Ken, work! As is to be expected in any Barbie-themed location, the actor is surrounded by bright pink architecture, with palm trees visible in the background. We’re getting some serious flashbacks to our Barbie dream house days!
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Understandably, fans were beside themselves. “OMG!!! The perfect Ken casting!!” one person commented on the Warner Bros. Instagram post, followed by a string of heart eye emojis. “Damn Ryan, you nailed it,” another wrote.
Of course, not everyone can be pleased. Dramatic celebrity makeovers always garner mixed reviews. It seems everyone can agree that Margot Robbie is perfect for the role of Barbie. However, some people wish Ken had been cast differently, with many saying they would have liked to see Chris Evans in the role. But personally, we believe Gosling is going to nail this one—and his partner Eva Mendes thinks so too.
In fact, according to an article published by The Daily Mail, the 48-year-old actress even addressed those who showed some hate on his husband’s look for the role. During an episode of the The Talk, host Natalie Morales brought up the backlash against Gosling. As a response, Mendes said, “People do know he’s not playing a real person, right? He’s playing a fake person.”
She even shared, “Well first of all, I saw the photo and the 14-year-old in me was like, ‘Ahhh.’ But you know, it’s a funny photo and he’s trying to be funny. So it worked on all levels.” Mendes also mentioned, “When I saw it, he sent it to me from work and I said, ‘Can I please have that underwear? Please. I never ask for anything.'”
If you check out Mendes’ Instagram, you’ll notice that she shared Gosling’s photo too. Her caption wrote, “So. F. Funny. So. F. Good. So F excited for you to see this…#Thatsmyken”
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As far as plot goes, there’s virtually no information yet, and it may be a while before we find out exactly what’s going to go down in this Gerwig film. Fan theories are all we have! Our money is on some sort of major spin on these classic characters. Judging by Gosling’s over-the-top appearance, one Instagram user who wrote, “I guess this is satire,” may be onto something! Our fingers are crossed for a teaser trailer sometime soon. Until then, we’ll be blasting Aqua’s “Barbie Girl” and dreaming of a Malibu vacation.
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