Once upon a time on the Internet, when “hey girl” memes were rampant, Ryan Gosling was known by some as the boyfriend of the Internet. Now, we get our first look at Gosling as America’s boyfriend—he plays Ken, as in Ken DollyBarbie’s popular character, in the upcoming film directed by Greta Gerwig Barbie doll.
(And for what it’s worth, Gosling, Talking to GQ in 2016, claiming that his boyfriend’s public personality is his “Canadian”. Okay!)
In a promotional image released today, Gosling-as-Ken feels like a hybrid of the previous characters he’s played: Luke’s icy peroxide-like mane. The place beyond the pine trees; Jacob’s tan in Crazy stupid Love; the conceit of dating a plastic woman like he did Lars and the Real Girl. Co-starring Margot Robbie as Barbie, Gosling is reportedly set to play one of the Kens — among several Barbies — in the film, which also stars America Ferrera, Simu Liu, Kate McKinnon, Emma Mackey, Issa Rae and Michael Cera, among others, many of whom will no doubt be revealed in the lead-up to the July 2023 release.
And while the acid-washed jean vest and custom Calvin Klein-style “Ken” shorts may not be something you’ve seen a Ken doll wear before, the vibe of the Gerwig production suggests that could be the main point. (Last year’s Berluti collaboration suggests that Ken may have more sleeves than we realize.)
“People often hear about ‘Barbie’ and think, ‘I know what that movie is going to be like,’” says Robbie. Vogue last year, “and then they heard that Greta Gerwig was writing and directing it, and they said, ‘Oh, maybe I’m not …”
The Barbie doll The franchise has been adopted by the Hollywood ringer for almost a decade now, with various players at the top: as IndieWire noted, screenwriter Diablo Cody is set to write and direct at a time; years later, in 2016, Amy Schumer is set to star, with a new screenplay by Community Producer Hilary Winston. But now it is in Gerwig’s hands, and will be here in about a year.
