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Ryan Gosling has his family to thank for perfecting his iconic “I’m Just Ken” Oscars performance. In a new interview from SXSW, the Fall Guy actor, 43, revealed that Eva Mendes and their daughters, Esmeralda and Amada, gave him some “tips” on his Kenergy during rehearsal.
“It was great. It was so fun because they came to the dress rehearsal the day before, and so, they were in the front row,” Ryan gushed during an interview with PEOPLE, which was published on Wednesday, March 13. “They gave me some tips and some notes, all great notes.”
The Barbie star then credited Eva, 50, and their children with motivating him to play the iconic doll Ken. Esmeralda is 9 years old, and Amada is now 7.
“They are such a huge part of this for me,” Ryan said, adding that “it was my girls’ interest in Barbie and disinterest in Ken that got me into this in the first place. It was beautiful to have them there at the end.”
Ryan’s Academy Awards performance of “I’m Just Ken” is going down in Oscars history. Wearing a pink bedazzled suit in homage of Marilyn Monroe‘s “Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend” number, the Canada native performed alongside his fellow Kens — including Simu Liu — in addition to rock stars Slash and Wolfgang Van Halen. Ryan also made sure to approach Barbie director and co-writer Greta Gerwig, star Margot Robbie and co-star America Ferrera in the crowd to let them sing a few bars.
At the end of his performance, eagle-eyed fans noticed that Ryan kissed his necklace while belting out the final note. The jewelry has the initial “E” on it, seemingly for Eva.
Ryan Gosling kissing his necklace Sending a ❤️ message to Eva Mendes & the kids? pic.twitter.com/mJ4RqCoBsF
— 𝗥𝘆𝗮𝗻 𝗚𝗼𝘀𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗗𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗣𝗮𝗴𝗲 ❀ ๑ೃ (@ryangoslingpics) March 11, 2024
Ryan and Eva have made it a point to keep their relationship and their daughters away from public scrutiny. However, the Notebook heartthrob has talked about their family dynamic on a few occasions. Ryan’s most memorable tribute to them was during his 2017 Golden Globe Awards acceptance speech when he won the award for Actor in a Musical or Comedy Film.
“You don’t get to be up here without standing on the shoulders of a mountain of people, and there’s just no time to thank everyone,” Ryan said before adding, “I just would like to try and thank one person properly and say that, while I was singing and dancing and playing piano and having one of the best experiences I’ve ever had on a film, my lady was raising our daughter, pregnant with our second and trying to help her brother fight his battle with cancer. If she hadn’t have taken all that on so that I could have this experience, it would surely be someone else up here other than me today. So, sweetheart, thank you. To my daughters, Amada and Esmeralda, I love you and if I may I’d like to dedicate this to the memory of her brother, Juan Carlos Mendez.”
