"Appreciated the film for its originality": Filmmaker Oliver Stone apologizes for resurfaced Barbie movie remark concerning Ryan Gosling

In June 2023, director Oliver Stone spoke about the Barbie movie during an interview with City A.M. In conversation with the publication, he asserted that Ryan Gosling was "wasting his time" by playing the lead role in the film. However, Stone recently apologized for his comments after they resurfaced online.

He took to Twitter on January 22 and clarified that his comment about Barbie was made when he was promoting his documentary Nuclear Now and had "little to no knowledge" about the Greta Gerwig project apart from its title.

Following his initial remarks about Gerwig's movie, Oliver Stone shared a post on X and apologized for "speaking ignorantly."

“I was able to see Barbie in a theater 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 apologize for speaking ignorantly,” he said.

Stone uploaded a tweet explaining himself (Image via X /@TheOliverStone)

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Filmmaker Oliver Stone apologizes as remark regarding Ryan Gosling and the Barbie movie resurfaces

Oliver Stone shared his thoughts on the Barbie movie (Image via Facebook/@Oliver Stone and IMDb)

In June 2023, during an interview with City A.M., Oliver Stone commented on the Barbie movie as he spoke about Ryan Gosling's involvement in the same. The 77-year-old accused Gosling of being a part of the "infantilization of Hollywood" and stated that he should be working on "more serious films."

In an article published by City A.M. on June 22, 2023, about a month ahead of the theatrical premiere of the Margot Robbie movie, Stone said:

“Ryan Gosling is wasting his time if he’s doing that s**t for money. He should be doing more serious films. He shouldn’t be a part of this infantilization of Hollywood.”

However, on January 22, the filmmaker apologized for his comments after they resurfaced online. He mentioned in his statement that he watched Barbie in a theater back in July and liked the movie's concept and uniqueness.

He tweeted:

“At the time, I was busy promoting my nuclear documentary in Europe and had little to no knowledge of the project beyond its title.”

He expressed that Greta Gerwig's approach to the film was undoubtedly different from what he anticipated. He concluded his statement by stating that he enjoyed Gerwig's 2017 film Lady Bird and went on to wish the crew behind the Barbie movie the best ahead of the Oscars.

"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,” he said.

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Ryan Gosling and Margot Robbie's Barbie recently won two awards at the Golden Globes, which took place on January 7, 2024. The film emerged victorious in the Cinematic and Box Office Achievement, and Best Original Song - Motion Picture categories.