Ryan Gosling goes viral with ‘confused’ response to Barbie win at Critics Choice Awards

‘I can already smell the memes,’ one viewer wrote after spotting the actor’s response

Ryan Gosling has become a meme once again thanks to his unexpected response to Barbie‘s win at the Critics Choice Awards.

The actor might have lost in the Best Supporting Actor category to Oppenheimer’s Robert Downey Jr, but he didn’t go home empty handed after winning Best Song for “I’m Just Ken”.

Bella Ramsey, star of The Last of Us, and In the Heights actor Anthony Ramos presented the award and, while introducing the nominees with a skit that poked fun at an unimpressed Ariana DeBose, the Barbie track performed by Gosling was announced as the winner.

The camera immediately cut to Gosling, who turned his head to the side and, with a confused look on his face, stared directly at the camera.

He remained staring at the camera with his expression while the song’s writers, Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt, stood up to celebrate.

Gosling’s reaction has since gone viral, with many hailing the moment as yet another meme to add to the many created during the actor’s Barbie press tour. Gosling, who played Ken in the blockbuster opposite Margot Robbie, was praised throughout 2023 for leaning heavily into the role during his red carpet appearances.

Many assumed Gosling thought the award win was “a prank”, writing that he looked “flabbergasted and “confused” by the announcement. Others welcome a brand new Gosling “meme” to add to the huge list of pre-existing Gosling memes.

Ryan Gosling has ‘flabbergasted’ expression after winning Critics Choice Award for Best Song (X/Twitter)

The song was beaten at the Golden Globes earlier this month by another Barbie track - “What Was I Made For?” – which was written by Billie Eilish and her brother Finneas O’Connell.

After being beaten in the category, Ronson jokingly posted a photo of his ripped-up speech in the bin.

Find more reaction to Gosling’s reaction below.

Barbie took home six awards in all – including Best Original Screenplay for Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach - but the big winner was Oppenheimer, which took home eight including Best Picture and Best Director for Christopher Nolan.

However, lead star Cillian Murphy lost out in the Best Actor category to Paul Giamatti, who won for The Holdovers. Both stars won at the Golden Globes earlier this month as the ceremony splits the acting categories into two genres: Drama and Comedy/Musical.

However, with Giamatti winning at the Critics Choice Awards, it cements the actor as a frontrunner for the Oscars, whose nominations will be announced later this month with the ceremony taking place in March.

Other winners included Emma Stone for Poor Things, Robert Downey Jr for Oppenheimer and Giamatti’s Holdovers co-star Da’Vine Joy Randolph.

Meanwhile, Chelsea Handler, who hosted the ceremony, made a jibe against her ex Jo Koy’s disastrous Golden Globes stint last week.