Ryan Gosling has revealed how his daughters helped him with his 'I'm Just Ken' Oscars performance

Ryan Gosling performs 'I'm Just Ken' onstage at the 2024 Oscars
(Image credit: Getty Images)

This week saw the 96th annual Academy Awards, and despite the show-stopping red carpet looks (featuring some of the best Oscars dresses of all time) and the big winners of the night, it was Ryan Gosling who made the most headlines. 

While the 43-year-old missed out on the Best Supporting Actor gong that he was nominated for, Gosling was the headline performer of the evening - taking to the stage with a huge ensemble of Kens to sing his infamous Barbie track, "I'm Just Ken".

And from star-studded cameos (Slash and Wolfgang Van Halen to name a few!) and the Marilyn Monroe references, to Gosling handing his microphone to Margot Robbie, Greta Gerwig, America Ferrera and even his longtime onscreen leading lady Emma Stone, it will go down as one of the most talked-about Oscars moments of all time.

Gosling opened up about the moment this week, while on the red carpet for the world premiere of his new film, The Fall Guy, crediting three very special women for the success of the performance - his partner Eva Mendes, and their daughters Esmeralda and Amada.

"It was great," the Barbie star told People on The Fall Guy red carpet. "It was so fun because they came to the dress rehearsal the day before and so they were in the front row."

"They gave me some tips and some notes, all great notes. They are such a huge part of this for me."

He continued: "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."

This is not the first time Gosling has spoken about his family during awards season, paying a very special tribute to his loved ones as he was awarded the Kirk Douglas Award for excellence in film at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. 

"I, for one, have been so lucky. I’ve gotten to go to the moon, be a motorcycle bank robber, a getaway driver, waltz through the stars, be an elementary school teacher - albeit a crack-addicted one - become a replicant from the future, a gangster from the past, a lovelorn stunt man, and most recently, thanks to Greta, a 70-year-old crotchless doll," Gosling said of his career in Hollywood. "Most importantly, I got to meet the girl of my dreams, Eva Mendes, and have two dream children."

Well, this is lovely. 

We will continue to update this story.

Jenny Proudfoot
Features Editor

Jenny Proudfoot is an award-winning journalist, specialising in lifestyle, culture, entertainment, international development and politics. She has worked at Marie Claire UK for seven years, rising from intern to Features Editor and is now the most published Marie Claire writer of all time. She was made a 30 under 30 award-winner last year and named a rising star in journalism by the Professional Publishers Association.