BANG Showbiz English
Ryan Gosling thinks the Ken doll’s “story must be told” after he saw his daughters leave one in the mud.
The ‘Drive’ actor, 42, who has daughters Esmerelda, seven, and Amada, five, with his actress wife Eva Mendes, 49, is playing Ken in Greta Gerwig’s upcoming ‘Barbie’ film and said his character would relate to his childhood self, who was famously captured in a dancing contest and was part of the Disney Channel’s ‘Mickey Mouse Club’.
He told GQ about empathising with a Ken doll abandoned by his kids: “I did see him, like, face down in the mud outside one day, next to a squished lemon, and it was like, this guy’s story does need to be told, you know?”
He added: “There’s something about this Ken that really, I think, relates to that version of myself. Just, like, the guy that was putting on Hammer pants and dancing at the mall and smelling like Drakkar Noir and Aqua Net-ing bangs.
“I owe that kid a lot. I feel like I was very quick to distance myself from him when I started making more serious films. But the reality is that, like, he’s the reason I have everything I have.”
Ryan thinks he has given his version of Ken as much of a story as possible, saying: “Ken –his job is beach. For 60 years, his job has been beach. What the f*** does that even mean?… and everyone was fine with that, for him to have a job that is nothing.
“But suddenly, it’s like, ‘No, we’ve cared about Ken this whole time.’ No, you didn’t. You never did. You never cared.
“Barbie never f***** with Ken. That’s the point. If you ever really cared about Ken, you would know that nobody cared about Ken.
“So your hypocrisy is exposed. This is why his story must be told. I care about this dude now. I’m like his representative: ‘Ken couldn’t show up to receive this award, so I’m here to accept it for him.’ ”
