Ryan Gosling’s Barbie-obsessed daughters have his “I’m Just Ken” choreography committed to memory.
“It was their, you know, interest in Barbie and their disinterest in Ken that sort of started all of this,” the actor, 43, said during an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Thursday, April 11. “And they’ve just obviously been my — it’s really been a team effort.”
Gosling shares daughters Esmeralda, 9, and Amada, 7, with his longtime partner, Eva Mendes. The little ones were on hand when Gosling filmed the big dance number in Greta Gerwig’s 2023 Barbie movie.
“There’s also been like a lot of this has no context for them. It’s just like a lot of fake tan stains around the house,” Gosling teased. “So I wanted them to come to the [Oscars] dress rehearsal to give it some kind of context for what had been going on.”
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Esmeralda and Amada cheered on their dad from the wings. “They know all the choreography better than I do and songs,” he confessed. “Oh, my God, they’re backstage kind of like showing me [the dance moves.]”
Gosling received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Ken, whose anthem “I’m Just Ken” earned a nod for Best Original Song. In March, Gosling performed at the 2024 Oscars with a group of 65 backup dancers, including Scott Evans, Simu Liu, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Ncuti Gatwa and more Kens.
Gosling commenced the performance while seated among the audience alongside costar Margot Robbie, whose laughter was uncontrollable. Dressed in a pink bedazzled suit, complemented by matching pink gloves, black shades and a black cowboy hat, Gosling made his way to the stage. Guns N’ Roses icon Slash and producer Mark Ronson also made cameos.
For months, Gosling playfully hinted about whether he would ultimately perform the Barbie hit at the Oscars or not.
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“And I wasn’t thinking about it until now, and now it’s all I’m going to think about,” he told W magazine in January. “Do you get paid to sing at the Oscars? Do you have to drive yourself? What kind of scratch is involved? They pick you up at least, right?”
While the song ultimately lost its category to Billie Eilish’s “What Was I Made For?,” Gosling’s performance was still a hit — partially thanks to his daughters.
“It was so fun because they came to the dress rehearsal the day before and so they were in the front row,” Gosling told People at the time. “They gave me some tips and some notes, all great notes.”
