Director Oliver Stone has issued an apology for calling Greta Gerwig-directed blockbuster Barbie "s***" and for accusing actor Ryan Gosling of "wasting his time" by starring in it.
The acclaimed filmmaker, 77, was responding to a story published by Deadline over the weekend, which unearthed the remarks he had made in an interview with City AM in June.
In the interview, Stone is quoted as saying: “Ryan Gosling is wasting his time if he’s doing that s*** for money. He should be doing more serious films. He shouldn’t be a part of this infantilisation of Hollywood.”
Adding: “Now it’s all fantasy, fantasy, fantasy, including all the war pictures: fantasy, fantasy.”
But taking to social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, Stone has backtracked on the comments on Tuesday.
The Platoon director began his statement by explaining that he had not seen Barbie at the time he made the comments and “had little to no knowledge of the project beyond its title”.
He went on to say: “I was able to see Barbie in a theatre back in July and appreciated the film for its originality and its themes. I found the filmmakers’ approach certainly different than what I expected. I apologise for speaking ignorantly.”
Stone added: “Barbie’s box office greatly boosted the morale of our business, which was welcome. I wish Greta and the entire Barbie team good fortune at the Oscars.”
His remarks are timely as this year's Oscars nominations have now been revealed.
Gosling is up for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Ken, his song I'm Just Ken is also up for Best Original Song, which means he will get the opportunity to perform the track live at the ceremony on March 10.
He will face stiff competition, as he competes against another song from the Barbie soundtrack, Billie Eilish's What Was I Made For?.
Meanwhile, co-star America Ferrera who played Gloria, has been nominated for Best Supporting Actress.
Barbie has also been recognised with nods for Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Production Design, Best Costume Design, plus, the coveted Best Picture.
Gerwig was noticeably snubbed in the Best Director's category while actress Margot Robbie also failed to be recognised for lead role as the titular character.
