Ryan Gosling has performed I’m Just Ken, the hit song from the movie Barbie, live on stage at the 96th Academy Awards, currently taking place in Los Angeles.
Nominated for a best original song Oscar, Gosling sang I’m Just Ken with great gusto, alongside 65 other “Kens”, Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash and musician Mark Ronson, in a musical spot heavily trailed by the Oscar show organisers.
The highly anticipated performance began with Gosling serenading Margot Robbie from the seat behind her in the audience, before taking to the bright pink stage to sing and dance with his fellow Kens, among them his co-stars Simu Liu, Kingsley Ben-Adir and Ncuti Gatwa.
The 43-year-old actor then returned to the crowd to get Barbie director Greta Gerwig and co-stars Robbie and America Ferrera to sing along, and stopped near his former La La Land co-star Emma Stone so she could belt out the lyrics.
Ryan Gosling and the cast of "Barbie" perform "I'm Just Ken" at the #Oscars. https://t.co/UNgGySGz3r pic.twitter.com/00hd0Jw8cy
— Variety (@Variety) March 11, 2024
The reaction in the Dolby Theatre was jubilant, with Steven Spielberg among those to give Gosling a standing ovation.
However, while Gosling won the hearts of those in the room, he did not win the Oscar for best song, losing just after his performance to singer Billie Eilish and her brother Finneas, who won for their Barbie song What Was I Made For?
Read more about the 2024 Oscars:
• Here’s our news wrap and full list of winners – now read Peter Bradshaw’s verdict
• Al Pacino, British mothers and a codpiece envelope: the real winners and losers of the night
• Relive how the ceremony unfolded with our liveblog and get up to speed with the top viral moments and the best quotes of the night
• Have a gander at how the stars looked on the red carpet and at the show
