Oliver Stone has issued an apology to Ryan Gosling for criticizing the actor for portraying Ken in the highly popular “Barbie” film, acknowledging that his previous comments were ill-informed.
The acclaimed director shared a statement on X, commending the film for its “originality” and “themes” after previously accusing Gosling of taking on the role of Barbie’s boyfriend purely for financial gain, in an interview from 2023 that recently resurfaced.
In his X post, Stone expressed, “I had the opportunity to watch ‘Barbie’ in a theater back in July and admired the film for its originality and thematic elements.” He further stated, “I found the approach of the filmmakers quite different from what I had anticipated. I apologize for my uninformed remarks.”
Stone also lauded “Barbie” director Greta Gerwig, citing her 2017 movie, “Ladybird,” as one of his favorites that year. As widely known, Gerwig’s “Barbie” became the highest-grossing film of 2023, earning over $1.4 billion at the box office and featuring Margot Robbie as Barbie alongside Gosling as Ken.
Stone made the controversial remarks about Gosling in a June 2023 interview with City A.M., just before the release of Barbie in theaters.
During the interview, Stone told a reporter that Gosling was “wasting his time if he’s doing that s*** for money,” alluding to “Barbie.”
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The director also criticized Gosling for contributing to the “infantilization of Hollywood.” Stone added, “Now it’s all fantasy, fantasy, fantasy, including all the war pictures: fantasy, fantasy.”