Jimmy Kimmel has revealed that Ryan Gosling ‘lied’ in February when he said he had not been asked to perform at the 2024 Oscars – claiming the Barbie star had been asked ‘repeatedly’ at the time.
Jimmy, 56, revealed to Lara Spencer during an interview on Good Morning America that father-of-two Ryan “had to think about it” when the Academy initially approached him, but teased that his performance at the Dolby Theater this Sunday will be a “major production ‘.
When asked what he thinks Ryan’s live rendition of the Barbie song I’m Just Ken will be like at the 96th Academy Awards, Jimmy revealed: ‘I hope it will be great, I think it will be great. It’s a big production and Ryan takes these things very, very seriously.”
Referring to comments Ryan made Variety magazine last month, Jimmy continued, “It’s funny because I think Ryan lied for a few months before he said, ‘Oh, I didn’t get asked to sing.’
‘That’s not true, he was repeatedly asked to sing at the Oscars.
Jimmy Kimmel has accused Ryan Gosling (left) of ‘lying’ about being asked to perform at the 96th Academy Awards
TV host Jimmy appeared on Good Morning America on Thursday ahead of his fifth time hosting the Oscars
Ryan, who received an Oscar nomination for his role in Barbie, will perform a song from the film called I’m Just Ken
‘I think he had to think about it for a while and he came in and looked around the room, he looked at the theater and said, “Okay, yeah, I think I’m going to do this,” and now he’s in! ‘
In an interview with Variety magazine published on February 7, the Drive actor said: ‘I still haven’t been asked. It would be too much of a risk if I did it. I don’t know how that would work. But I’m open to it.’
Music producer Mark Ronson – who co-wrote the popular song with Andrew Wyatt – also addressed the possibility of Ryan performing at the Oscars, telling reporters at the 2024 Grammys that it would be his “dream.”
Less than three weeks later, DailyMail.com exclusively revealed that Ryan would take to the stage this year and release the Barbie hit – which has been nominated for the Original Song Oscar.
This year marks Jimmy’s fourth time hosting the Oscars and he revealed that he thinks this year’s nominated films, such as Oppenheimer, Poor Things and Killers of the Flower Moon, are “all good.”
“That’s a big part of why I decided to host the show this year, because I know there are movies that people have actually seen, which makes it a lot easier to joke about,” he admitted.
When Lara asked Jimmy if former Oscar host Billy Crystal gave him “special advice” ahead of the big night, he revealed: “He does. In fact, he texted me this morning, he’ll get back to me and see how things go. “I sent him my monologue, I wanted him to watch it and see what he thought.”
The father-of-two also revealed he will be impersonating ‘all’ the characters from this year’s nominated films.
Ryan, a father of two, stars opposite Margot Robbie in Barbie, directed by Greta Gerwig and released in July 2023
According to Jimmy, Ryan had to “think about it” before saying yes to the Oscar gig
The 56-year-old spoke with GMA’s Lara Spencer about what viewers can expect from this year’s ceremony on Sunday, March 10.
“I’ll be dressed as all of them, starting with Emma Stone’s character in Poor Things and all the way up to Oppenheimer. I’m going to try to lose at least 80 pounds over the course of the show,” Jimmy joked before addressing his future as host of Hollywood’s biggest night.
‘I’m not going to say I won’t host the Oscars anymore. I’m certainly not going to say that I will host the Oscars again. I don’t know if I’ll be asked, this could be a disaster and they could say, “Okay, that’s enough.”‘
Last month, Jimmy starred in a Barbie-themed Oscars teaser, in which he was dressed in an elegant tuxedo as he got lost in Barbieland, where he was asked if he was “middle-aged Ken.”
He is then shown by Weird Barbie – played by SNL veteran Kate McKinnon – how to get to Oscarland via a fake but colorful car.