Steve Carell Left No Stone Unturned in His Efforts To Humiliate Ryan Gosling For Making Him Look Bad
Ryan Gosling was honored with the Kirk Douglas Award at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival on January 13th. Presenter Steve Carell used the opportunity to poke fun at the actor’s reputation for being overly kind and humble. In a speech that had the audience roaring with laughter, Carell pretended to despise Gosling for always doing good deeds and then downplaying them.
The hilarious roast emphasized on how Gosling’s natural charisma and kindness have made him one of Hollywood’s most beloved stars. Carell has a comical personality of himself, and would he leave it to roast one of his best friends on the big stage? He did not.
How Did Steve Carell Mock Ryan Gosling’s Character?
Steve Carell began by sarcastically calling Gosling “delightful” and respectful, before revealing his true aim: asking “Why do I hate Ryan?” He then launched into examples of Gosling’s good deeds, like entertaining seniors with his band and rescuing animals, that paint him as charming – and that’s what Carell pretends to hate.
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“Ryan Gosling is the type of person who would be singled out for an award like this, but unfortunately, Santa Barbara got it wrong again,” Carell joked.
He slammed Gosling for not boasting about his own virtues, saying He started out by telling a story “Let me tell you a little story. When Ryan and I were working together on ‘Crazy Stupid Love,’ you just saw, it was the end of a shooting week, and we were standing outside our trailers, and uh, we were getting ready to leave for the weekend and talking about what our weekend plans would be. And I was going to be spending uh, a quiet evening and weekend with my family, and Ryan told me that his band had a gig that evening. ‘Where?’ I asked. ‘A senior center in Glendale,’ he replied. He was going to spend his Friday night playing music for some old folks in Glendale. Yeah, isn’t that just adorable?” He continued. “A movie star would have told that story on a talk show, would have used it, would have gotten some juice out of it.”
Carell took the opportunity to tell all the good deeds Ryan Gosling has done in the past, that no one has even seen. According to him, Gosling is really one of the most genuine actors in the industry.
Is Steve Carell’s Roast Really Meant As Praise?
As his speech went on, Carell gradually revealed his true admiration for Gosling’s kindness and talent.
“He makes other actors who are pretending to be nice, like me, look like insincere piles of garbage,” Carell said, before finally admitting “I do, I do love Ryan Gosling.”
The brilliant meta-comedy underscores why Gosling is so beloved in Hollywood. By playfully mocking his down-to-earth charm, Carell actually highlighted the qualities that have distinguished Gosling’s career.
Gosling became a massive star in films like The Notebook and La La Land by pairing his understated charm with intense on-screen charisma. He chooses diverse roles based on artistic merit, not fame, perfectly balancing indie passion projects with big-budget blockbusters like Blade Runner 2049.
And he’s famously humble about his talents. So Carell’s exaggerated hatred for Gosling’s nice-guy persona was actually an ingenious way to toast the actor’s character.
As Carell said, “it is genuine. He is a genuinely nice person.”
What Made Ryan Gosling Worthy of the Prestigious Award?
The Santa Barbara award capped off a landmark year for Gosling, as his hilarious performance as Ken in ‘Barbie’ showed new depths to his comedy chops.
With bleached hair and self-obsessed energy, Gosling’s Ken became an internet phenomenon, perfectly balancing laughs with surprising pathos. It showed that after 30 years in film, the Canadian actor continues to take bold risks.
Gosling’s charming red carpet appearance with director Greta Gerwig underlined his reputation as Hollywood’s consummate professional. While Carell’s speech may have poked fun, it ultimately shone a light on why Ryan Gosling remains so beloved in the industry.
Crazy, Stupid, Love is streaming on Amazon Prime Videos.
