- Ryan Gosling says his Ken in "Barbie" was inspired by Sylvester Stallone and "The Bachelorette."
- The Oscar-nominated actor spoke to Variety about his portrayal of Ken in the film.
Ryan Gosling says his version of Ken in "Barbie" was inspired by '80s Sylvester Stallone and "The Bachelorette."
The Oscar-nominated actor spoke to Variety about how he portrayed Ken in the film, including the inspiration behind Ken's outfits and behavior.
In some scenes in "Barbie," Gosling's character wears a mink coat. That's a result of Gosling and director Greta Gerwig's mutual love for '80s Sylvester Stallone, the actor said.
"We found out that Stallone wore a lot of minks," Gosling told Variety. "As long as Ken was wearing it, he was the Ken with the mink — and that separated him from the other Kens."
The mink being a defining part of Ken's personality was also partially inspired by the reality dating show "The Bachelorette."
"One guy's the guy that wears glasses. One guy has the one earring. If you were to challenge and do the same thing as that person, you'd be infringing on their identity, and so Ken's identity became the mink," Gosling said.
That aside, there's also a parallel between the male contestants on "The Bachelorette" and the Kens in Barbieland, Gosling said.
"It's not dissimilar, in the sense that they sit around idly waiting for the Bachelorette to acknowledge them. And, yes, they have no attention outside of the attention she gives them," Gosling said.
In January, Gosling received an Oscar nomination for best supporting actor for his role as Ken in "Barbie." Gerwig and Margot Robbie, who plays the titular role in the film, were snubbed in their respective categories.
"There is no Ken without Barbie, and there is no Barbie movie without Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie, the two people most responsible for this history-making, globally-celebrated film," Gosling said in a statement expressing his disappointment at the news.
The "Barbie" movie received eight Oscar nominations in all, including nods for best picture and production design.
A representative for Gosling did not immediately respond to a request for comment from BI sent outside regular business hours.