Glen Powell has had a great 2024. The actor has been in two box office smashes, Anyone but You and Twisters, as well as a critically acclaimed Netflix thriller, Hitman. He's poised to be the next big thing in Hollywood, and apparently, serve as a sort of improvement on the Ryan Gosling model. Not our words.
These words, and this specific comparison, came about on August 27. An anonymous Hollywood producer told The Wrap that Glen Powell is going to be more successful than Gosling because he appeals to both men and women.
A producer criticized Ryan Gosling's star power
The assumption being that Ryan Gosling, by comparison, only appeals to women:
"Unlike an actor like Ryan Gosling whose appeal is mostly limited to female audiences, Glen appeals to both females and males."
The quote sparked widespread debate online. Cinephiles were quick to point out that Ryan Gosling has always balanced out female-friendly fare like The Notebook and Barbie with grittier, male-based films like Drive and Blade Runner 2049. In fact, Gosling is one of the people most commonly named when listing off contemporary male movie stars.
Glen Powell evidently agreed. The actor took to Twitter within hours of The Wrap article's publication, and he had the perfect response to the comparison. Instead of stoking the flames, and baiting those who are team Gosling, he was complimentary. He even referenced "I'm Ken," the Oscar nominated song that Gosling sang in Barbie:
Glen Powell called Gosling a 'legend' on Twitter
Gosling is a legend.
— Glen Powell (@glenpowell) August 27, 2024
I’m just Glen. https://t.co/Mhj0G2jyfU
If anything, Powell seems to be benefiting from following the Ryan Gosling playbook. The actor has definitely found success in romantic films, the same way Gosling did, but his close collaborations with auteurs like Richard Linklater and Edgar Wright suggest the same kind of mainstream/indie balance that Gosling found with directors like Nicolas Winding Refn and Derek Cianfrance.
Both Powell and Gosling have also shown a propensity for being deceptively sharp comedic talents. Gosling was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his hilarious turn in Barbie, and Powell is filming a TV series titled Chad Powers, in which he plays a washed up college athlete.
Tinseltown is big enough for the both of them.