Barbenhiemer had its big moment this summer when Barbie and Oppenheimer premiered on the 2023 movie schedule on the same day. However, it seems like this double-feature discussion could continue into awards season. There are tons of categories these two films could nab nominations for, but, I think the biggest battle will be for Best Supporting Actor. Both Robert Downey Jr., who played Lewis Strauss in Christopher Nolan’s bio-pic, and Ryan Gosling, who portrayed Ken in Greta Gerwig’s candy-colored existential comedy, are likely frontrunners for the trophy, and it's time to break down who has the best chance of winning.
While the Academy Awards are months away, the Barbenheimer hype is still real, and I can't help but marvel over these two performances. Even though I think RDJ has a slight edge over Gosling, both men stand very good chances of taking home that gold trophy come March.
Why Ryan Gosling’s Comedic Kenergy Could Win Him An Oscar
If someone needs to learn how to commit to a bit, they should immediately look to Ryan Gosling’s performance in Barbie for an example, because it’s a masterclass on the topic. In many reviews for Barbie, including CinemaBlend’s, his performance has been deemed one of the major highlights of the film. While Ken is genuinely hilarious and over the top, Gosling brings depth and honesty to his portrayal that makes this character believable.
While speaking to IndieWire, Gerwig opened up about Gosling’s commitment to the role, and why his portrayal of Ken worked so well. She said:
Noah [Baumbach] and I had written the part for him and everyone said, ‘Oh, you must know Ryan.’ And I was like, ‘No, I don’t know Ryan. Do you know Ryan? Because I’ve never met him.’ But I had a kind of sense of how funny he was, how deeply funny he is, and how all of his comedy comes from just extreme commitment and grounded-ness, that it’s never standing outside of it and judging it, it’s always from the inside.
I think it’s safe to say that not many people can pull off seriously saying “mojo dojo casa house,” singing a power ballad called “I’m Just Ken,” and unironically wearing a fur mink. But Ryan Gosling can.
Not only did he pull it off, he added a level of nuance to Ken that made the audience both laugh at him and feel empathy for him. On the surface Barbie’s companion could have been a one-dimensional shallow dude or the film’s ultimate antagonist. However, because of this actor’s complex and committed performance, we got a goofy yet seriously poignant commentary on the dangers of patriarchy.
On top of being a standout among the Barbie cast, and giving a critically acclaimed performance, Gosling has a history with the Academy. He received two prior nominations, for 2016’s La La Land and 2006’s Half Nelson, this means the voting body knows him and likes him. So, having that track record could help this one-of-a-kind performance from Ryan Gosling not only get nominated but also a win.
Why Robert Downey Jr.’s Transformative Oppenheimer Role Might Get Him An Academy Award
Much like Ryan Gosling as Ken in Barbie, Robert Downey Jr.’s role in Oppenheimer was transformative and unlike anything we’ve seen from the actor before. We’re used to seeing the charismatic, goofy, Tony Stark-like RDJ. However, in Christopher Nolan’s haunting biopic, we got the exact opposite.
The timeline of Oppenheimer bounces between the building of the bomb and the hearing for Lewis Strauss’s (RDJ) approval to the cabinet. Over the course of the movie, it's slowly revealed that he is the antagonist of the film. He gives a relatively subdued, incredibly dramatic performance, and it juxtaposes Cillian Murphy’s Oppenheimer perfectly as we learn about the atomic bomb’s birth from two different angles.
While everyone in the Oppenheimer cast is a true knockout, Downey stands out as one of the biggest highlights, as mentioned in CB’s review of Nolan’s biopic. We got to see this actor we know and love fully transform into another completely different human being. To me, that shines a brilliantly bright spotlight on RDJ’s talent and range as a performer. Christopher Nolan described how the juxtaposition of the movie star Downey is and the character he was asked to play perfectly, as he explained on the Happy Sad Confused podcast:
It’s really cool to see somebody who’s achieved such greatness as a movie star then pivot completely and stretch themselves in a way that a lot of people haven’t seen him do.
The Academy loves a career winner (see Leonardo DiCaprio's win for The Revenant), and I think RDJ would fall into that category. Like Gosling he’s been nominated twice before, for 1992's Chaplin and 2008's Tropic Thunder. Downey has also received critical and mass acclaim for his portrayal of Iron Man, which Nolan said was one of the most inspired casting decisions ever made in the same podcast cited above. So, not only would a win be acknowledging Robert Downey Jr.’s legacy, but it would also be awarding a truly masterful performance that shows just how talented this movie star is.
Looking Back At How Past Oscar Winners Could Predict This Race
Due to The Academy’s bio-pic bias and their love for a classic drama, I’m inclined to say Robert Downey Jr. has a slight edge over Ryan Gosling in this race. In the last ten years, four actors who have won in this category played real people.
However, not only did Ke Huy Quan make his way onto the 2023 Oscar Winners list for his performance in the sci-fi hit Everything Everywhere All At Once, he was the clear frontrunner for a very long time. EEAAO is not your typical Academy movie, and his win was major. Since his performance was so beloved, it makes me think it’s possible Ryan Gosling could get a similar sort of attention for a film that’s not your typical Oscars drama.
Looking at the two men’s performances, and their history with the Academy, I honestly think they’re pretty even. I truly don’t believe anyone else will match them, and one will win next year.
However, if I had to pick one, it’s Robert Downey Jr.’s year. Not only would it reflect his entire career, it would also acknowledge a phenomenal dramatic performance, unlike anything we’ve seen from him before.
