Ryan Gosling
He just might be the perfect guy
Ryan Gosling is full of surprises. One minute, it seems he’s settling in as a certain type of leading man—intense, sexy, serious. The next, he shows up in La La Land, a breezy song-and-dance tribute to vintage Hollywood, pulling off romance and jazzy musical numbers with one hundred percent commitment. And so we fall in love with a new Ryan Gosling all over again. The movie industry agrees: Gosling’s role in La La Land earned him Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy at this year’s Golden Globes. Not bad for a first try.
Gosling’s good looks guarantee him fantasy man status. But behind that buff exterior, there’s a bit of the oddball about him, an outsider quality that’s raw and unstudied. It’s what gives gives his performances an added edge, and why Ryan Gosling’s characters are ultimately so disarming (and likely also the inspiration for the Ryan Gosling “hey girl” boyfriend meme that at one time ruled the Internet).
What is it about this guy? Maybe it’s because he’s Canadian. Or that he was brought up Mormon. Or that Gosling’s first inspiration to act was his Elvis impersonator uncle who he performed with in shopping malls. At an early age, Gosling decided to adopt Marlon Brando’s Brooklyn accent because he liked it better than his own. By 12, he had auditioned and landed a spot as a Disney Mouseketeer alongside Justin Timberlake. To Gosling, performing means freedom: “To me, it wasn’t about not wanting to be myself, it was about wanting to not only have to be myself, “ he’s said. “Because I don’t have to. And so why would I?”
Gosling brings his unique brand of charisma to every eclectic role, from The Notebook in 2004 (voted by Entertainment Weekly, and many others, Most Romantic Kiss) to The Big Short in 2015. And in 2017, we have lots more Ryan Gosling to look forward to: this March, Terrence Malicks’s Song to Song places him in an indie music love triangle. And by this summer, he’ll be chasing down Harrison Ford in the much-anticipated sci-fi sequel Blade Runner 2049. Who knows which Ryan we’ll see? This we do know—he’ll be absolutely perfect every time.
