Ryan Gosling has been a star for more than three decades. And, judging by the way he absolutely crushed it during the mega song-and-dance performance of his spotlight Barbie song “I’m Just Ken” at the Oscars earlier this year you’d think the 43-year-old triple-threat lives in a zone where nerves are never an issue.
But in the first promo for his third stint as host of Saturday Night Live this weekend (April 13), Gosling is as jangled as a 12-year-old asking his first crush out to the movies. It’s all a put-on, of course. But in the endearing video, Gosling practices how he’s going to introduce himself to the night’s musical guest, country singer Chris Stapleton, and he just can’t seem to get it right.
Wearing a Stapleton T-shirt, Gosling works up his nerve to knock on the singer’s dressing room door as he rehearses his best meet cool lines for the “Tennessee Whiskey” star. “Mr. Stapleton, big fan, love your music,” Gosling says as he grips a head shot of Stapleton and a black marker. “Nah, it’s stupid.”
Trying out a more casual approach, Gosling whips his phone out of his back pocket and gets in selfie position as he says, “Yo Chris! One for the ‘gram?” That one also fell flat, so Gosling opts for a more formal, Shakespearean take, intoning, “Master Stapleton, ’tis I, Sir Gosling. That’s cool,” he says.
But when Gosling finally works up the confidence to open the door, he walks into a darkened room to find Stapleton’s perfectly lit, signature straw cowboy hat sitting majestically on a mannequin head. The image is so overwhelming that Gosling drops his marker and photo in awe as he struts toward the hat, thinks better of it, then plops it on his head contentedly as Stapleton’s “White Horse” blasts out.
Gosling will hit screens on Friday (April 12) in the action comedy The Fall Guy, in which he stars as aging choreographer Colt Seavers in the film loosely based on the 1980s TV series about stunt performers that starred Lee Majors. The actor made a surprise appearance on SNL last weekend during Kristen Wiig’s fifth hosting turn, presenting the beloved former SNL star with her five-timers hosting jacket.
Check out Gosling’s promo below.
