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Ryan Gosling is ending an era!
On Saturday, the Barbie star returned to host, Saturday Night Live, and he kicked-off the show by bidding one very special character farewell, Ken.
Taking the stage in a relaxed black suit, the host knew what the audience wanted, but he wasn’t going to give it to them…just yet.
“I’m not gonna make any jokes about Ken, because it’s not funny,” he said. “Ken and I, we had to break up. We went too deep and it’s over, so I’m not gonna talk about it.”
Ryan Gosling made his return to Saturday Night Live and performed his version of Taylor Swift's All Too Well. – Saturday Night Live/YouTube
Gosling couldn’t keep his word.
“I actually am gonna talk about it a little bit,” he said with a little chuckle. “You know when you play a character that hard, that long, it’s just…letting go just feels like a break up and for processing a break up, there’s only one thing that can help, the music of the great Taylor Swift.”
As Gosling took the seat at a piano, the back lights and the band went pink as he reflected on his bleach blonde hair, roller blades and the Kenergy that swept the nation, by singing his own version of Taylor Swift’s breakup anthem, “All Too Well.”
Emily Blunt took the stage with Ryan Gosling during his opening monologue. – Saturday Night Live/YouTube
“Cause I was just Ken and now I’m just Ryan,” the 43-year-old star sang as he spun the lyrics to the song so that it was “Ryan’s Version.”
Before going into the second act of the song, Gosling was stopped by his The Fall Guy co-star, Emily Blunt, who tried to convince him to end his Barbie era, and focus on being the stunt man from their latest film.
In a last ditch effort, Blunt smashes a bottle over Gosling’s head, and hits him with a chair to get him to snap out of it, but it doesn’t work.
Soon Gosling reminds Blunt of her Oppenheimer character, Kitty, and all the success (or lack there of according to Gosling) she saw during the epic, Barbenheimer run — where both Barbie and Oppenheimer had simultaneous releases.
Together, Blunt and Gosling closed the monologue by bidding farewell to Kitty and Ken. Blowing out a Ken candle, Gosling says “farewell my sweet prince.” When the candle lights again, Gosling reassures Blunt and the audience that “Ken will never die,” before launching into the show.
Swift did not join the sing-a-long, as she was busy with her boyfriend, Travis Kelce, Saturday night at the Coachella Valley Music Festival.
Gosling held his own as he returned to Studio 8H. Breaking character before the show started, Gosling was joined by Kate McKinnon as they reprised the hilarious “Close Encounter” sketch, where they play a group of people abducted by aliens.
Gosling — who plays Todd — giggled his way through the sketch as they recounted their meeting with aliens. Gosling also appeared in a Beavis and Butt-Head, sketch, and alongside Bowen Yang as a doctor who couldn’t keep it together.
College basketball phenom, Caitlin Clark also made a surprise appearance and Chris Stapleton was the musical guest. Gosling’s return comes a week after he crashed host, Kristen Wiig’s SNL five-timers club opening monologue.
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