Ryan Gosling's romantic gesture to Eva Mendes is going viral

Ryan Gosling is one of the most talked-about men in the world, particularly this month as the world waits in anticipation for the release of Barbie. 

The live-action movie about the iconic Mattel doll is making headlines for many reasons - Margot Robbie's hilarious request before she accepted the role of Barbie, the A-list actress that originally bagged the role and of course the subsequent Barbiecore trend. 

But the main focus of the Barbie craze has undoubtedly been Ryan Gosling, starring in the film as the titular character's boyfriend Ken. 

Yes, from his reaction to the #NotMyKen backlash to the new "I'm Just Ken" music video, Ryan Gosling has been front and centre these past few months. This was no exception this week as the 42-year-old attended Barbie's world premiere.

And while Gosling attended alone without his partner Eva Mendes and two daughters who stayed at home, he made a point of paying tribute to all three of them.

It was his sweet gesture to Eva Mendes that made the most headlines, with Gosling accessorising his red carpet look with a nod to his wife - a chain necklace decorated with a Barbie pink letter "E", which he confirmed was a tribute to Mendes. 

The 42-year-old also took his time on the red carpet to speak about his daughters, calling them "brilliant comedians" and explaining that they "helped" him with his character, even coming to set with him on one of the days.

“They’ve seen a lot pieces of Barbie and helped me a lot with it,” he recalled. “They were a huge inspiration for me.”

This was also the case for his signing on to the project in the first place, with Gosling explaining that after seeing his daughters' Ken doll face down in the mud next to a squished lemon, he decided that Ken's story had to be told. 

"I care about this dude now," Gosling told GQ in his cover story. "I’m like his representative".

Barbie is set for release on 21 July 2023.

We officially cannot wait for this.