Barbie might’ve lost out on several Oscar nominations at the Academy Awards on Sunday night, but you wouldn’t have known it from Ryan Gosling’s hot-pink performance of the Best Original Song contender “I’m Just Ken.”
Greta Gerwig’s candy-colored film was up for nine gold statuettes on Sunday night including song, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Costume Design, Best Production Design, Best Supporting Actor and Actress, and Best Picture. Billie Eilish took to the stage earlier in the show to perform her own beloved Barbie tune, the ballad “What Was I Made For?” to widespread praise, setting Gosling’s rousing crowd-pleaser up for success.
Gosling—who’d lost out on Best Supporting Actor earlier in the night to Robert Downey, Jr.—took to the stage in a bedazzled, hot-pink suit befitting his character, belting out a glorious rendition of his character’s signature song. The other Kens soon joined him on stage, as did Wolfgang Van Halen and, most excitingly, legendary guitarist Slash of Guns N’ Roses—surely two Ken-approved musicians. To say the room was loving it would be an understatement.
If that wasn’t enough, Eilish—who couldn’t stop laughing during Gosling’s performance—soon thereafter won Best Original Song. Ken himself might be the toxic male character to end all toxic male characters, but it’s hard to think of anyone who’s brought more joy (and sold more tie-dye hoodies) this Oscars season than Gosling. On this Oscars night, everyone was feeling the Kenergy.
