Ryan Gosling did as terrific a job as every other time while playing the character of Ken in Greta Gerwig’s recent blockbuster, Barbie. But while that granted him a massive commendation from fans and critics alike, one person still failed to acknowledge his performance and felt that Gosling was “wasting his time” by working in that movie: Oliver Stone.
Although a massively renowned director cum producer cum screenwriter, Stone has been under much controversy for quite some time now, and this comment of his further added fuel to the already raging fire. Thus, even when he issued an apology to Gerwig over his statement, netizens and Barbie fans believed that it was a mere PR stunt to get him back in their good books.
Oliver Stone Issued An Apology To Greta Gerwig After His Comments On Barbie
Although Oliver Stone has earned much acclamation for his incredible filmmaking skills, he has seemingly stained his reputation through his controversial comments, which have often landed him in the middle of raging backlash from fans.
Yet, the Oscar-winning director doesn’t seem to want to hold back on his opinions, and once again stepped forward to claim that Ryan Gosling was “wasting his time if he’s doing that sh-t for money” while indirectly referring to Barbie as a non-serious film in an interview with City A.M.
Since his comments once again ended up landing him in massive controversy, especially for a film that crossed the $1 billion mark at the box office, Stone then went on to issue an official statement holding his apology for Greta Gerwig, the director of the 2023 blockbuster that was Barbie.
Taking to his X handle @TheOliverStone, he first expressed his disappointment at Deadline for having run a “sensationalistic, out-of-context statement” that he made on the film before it was even released and when he had “little to no knowledge of the project beyond its title.” He then wrote:
“I was able to see Barbie in a theatre 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.”
My statement on #Barbie — @DEADLINE #GretaGerwig #BarbieMovie pic.twitter.com/ek0vquIu2f
— Oliver Stone (@TheOliverStone) January 23, 2024
While he continued to acknowledge how massively the box office for Barbie “boosted the morale of our business” and wished the entire Barbie cast and crew “good fortune at the Oscars,” netizens and Barbie fans don’t seem to want to buy this as a sincere apology from Oliver Stone.
Netizens Believe Oliver Stone’s Apology Is A Mere ‘PR Stunt’
Even though Oliver Stone apologized to all the people involved in the making of Barbie, most of the 2023 blockbuster’s fans aren’t anywhere close to buying his apology. Taking to X, here’s how they are reacting to him expressing his regret:
we do not accept his apology + he tanked
— 𝗣𝗘𝗣𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗦 (@WHITEH0TPEPPERS) January 23, 2024
Thank you,,,, next!!!!!!
— DataGem (@Livingproof405) January 23, 2024
Man is old should rest
— Hyper (@Hyperloll4) January 23, 2024
Sounds like a PR clean up to me. He meant what he said, now that he’s getting well deserved backlash he’s trying to backtrack.
— Katia 🏳️🌈🏳️⚧️ (@KataClysmic_1) January 23, 2024
He ate his words, must have been really hard for him to swallow
— Photo Artist 🎨| NFT. NYC 2024 (@JayJay__92) January 23, 2024
i’m all for people admitting when they’re wrong and apologising, but that’s such a strange thing to say about a movie you haven’t seen??
— 𝒥𝒥 (@AcousticAri) January 23, 2024
Was he sober when he said that?
— Will (@WillLDN001) January 23, 2024
Well, for what it’s worth, considering all these fan reactions, it seems it would take more than some time for Oliver Stone to be able to get back on track and in fans’ good books.
Meanwhile, Barbie is now available to be streamed on Max.
