Trivia

Was taken out of elementary school as a child and taught at home by his mother because of constant abuse from other students.

According to an interview in GQ, he was the only Mickey Mouse Club cast member that didn't live in the same complex as all the other cast members and their families. He and his family lived in a nearby trailer park and he was the family's only source of income.

Gained 60 lbs to play Jack Salmon in The Lovely Bones (2009) by eating melted ice cream. Ultimately he was fired due to creative differences which left him, in his words, "fat and unemployed".

He played all his filmed piano-playing scenes in La La Land, learning to play the instrument in the months before shooting.

Unlike many successful actors near his age, he has no entourage and few close friends. He admits to often preferring solitude while not working, attributing it to his autonomous latter childhood.

A series of videos, entitled "Ryan Gosling Won't Eat His Cereal", which feature clips from various Gosling films with a spoonful of cereal superimposed over the footage, went viral in 2013, receiving millions of views on Vine and YouTube. When the creator of the videos, Ryan McHenry, passed away from osteosarcoma in May 2015, Gosling posted his own video on Vine, in which he can be seen eating a bowl of cereal in tribute to McHenry. He also offered his public condolences to McHenry's family.

Built the kitchen table featured in The Notebook (2004) in preparation for his role as Noah.

His favorite actor is Gary Oldman.

Was in a relationship with Rachel McAdams twice, having met on the set of The Notebook (2004). They were originally together from June 2005 to July 2007 before reconciling in August 2008, only to separate a second time in November 2008.

Is an accomplished jazz guitarist and a fan of Chet Baker; started a band with his friend Zach Shields called Dead Man's Bones.

He is in a relationship with Eva Mendes, whom he met on the set of The Place Beyond the Pines (2012) in July 2011. They have two daughters.

Traveled to Chad in 2005 to make a documentary on the Darfur refugees living there.

Can speak some basic, conversational Spanish. He began learning in 2011 after starting to date longtime friend and costar Eva Mendes. He said in 2012 he was attempting to read Zoé Valdés' Café Nostalgia in Spanish, and his two daughters with Mendes are being raised bilingual.

Born in the same hospital as his The Notebook (2004) co-star Rachel McAdams -- St. Joseph's Hospital in London, Ontario -- though he's younger.

Has 2 daughters: Esmeralda Amada Gosling (b. September 12, 2014) & Amada Lee Gosling (b. April 29, 2016) with girlfriend, Eva Mendes.

Was considered to play Batman in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) before Ben Affleck was cast.

Was in a relationship with Sandra Bullock, having met on the set of Murder by Numbers (2002) (May 2002-July 2003).

Beat out 17,000 people for a place in The All New Mickey Mouse Club (1989) in January 1993.

Was the first Canadian-born performer in over 60 years to be nominated for the best actor Oscar in Half Nelson (2006). The last was Walter Pidgeon for Madame Curie (1943).

Favorite movie is East of Eden (1955)

With two of his friends, he has opened a Moroccan restaurant called Tagine in Beverly Hills, California.

In school, his nickname was Trouble.

He moved to Los Angeles, California when he was 16.

Took his mother and his sister to the Oscars in 2007.

New York City: Announces that he plans to take an unspecified "break" from acting because he feels as if he has "lost perspective on what I'm doing." (March 2013)

He is trained in and regularly practices Muay Thai.

He first saw Blue Velvet (1986) when he was 14 years old. This movie left a strong impression on him.

Purchased the Jeep Cherokee driven by Ben Chaplin in Murder by Numbers (2002) from the set of the movie.

Auditioned for the role of Frankie Ballenbacher in Alpha Dog (2006) but lost to Justin Timberlake.

Ryan drives the same color and year model 2011 Chevy Impala in both Drive (2011) and The Ides of March (2011).

Was originally cast as Jack Salmon in The Lovely Bones (2009), but after dropping out of the project a day before shooting began, Mark Wahlberg was cast instead.

Has released a song titled "Put Me in the Car", which can be found on his website.

Lives in the popular Los Angeles neighborhood of Silver Lake. Other Silver Lake locals include Beck, Bo Barrett, Christina Ricci, Rachel McAdams, and Jason Lee.

Auditioned for the role of Sam Flynn in Tron: Legacy (2010), but lost to Garrett Hedlund.

He is of roughly half French-Canadian ancestry (from both of his parents combined), along with English, Scottish, Irish, and about 1/32 German. The Gosling surname originates in England, where Ryan's great-great-grandfather, George Edward Gosling, was born in Paddington. Also, one of Ryan's five times paternal great-grandfather, James-Jacques Robinson/Robertson, who was from the United States, was African-American, and married into the French-Canadian community.

Appeared in two films with Michelle Williams: The United States of Leland (2003) and Blue Valentine (2010). They lived together for four weeks, while filming "Blue Valentine", in a house in Carbondale, Pennsylvania.

Is the first person born in the 1980s to have been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor (he has been nominated in the category twice). The next four were Jesse Eisenberg (born in 1983), Eddie Redmayne (one win, one nomination) (born in 1982), Andrew Garfield (born in 1983), and Daniel Kaluuya (born in 1989).

Touring the U.S. and Canada with his band, Dead Man's Bones, in support of their debut album. (October 2009)

He and Benicio Del Toro are making tentative plans to visit the jungle in Bolivia, to learn a few survival skills first-hand for Che: Part Two (2008) (aka "Che"). (August 2004)

Was mentioned in two movies in 2014: Maps to the Stars (2014) and Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014).

His characters often suffer a broken nose, as seen in Blue Valentine (2010), Only God Forgives (2013), and Blade Runner 2049 (2017).

By fans in public, he often gets confused for fellow Canadian actor named Ryan, Ryan Reynolds.

Has an older sister named Mandi Gosling.

As of 2024, he has appeared in three films that were nominated for the Best Picture Oscar: The Big Short (2015), La La Land (2016) and Barbie (2023).

He is the first person born in the 1980s (and thus could be considered the first millennial) to have been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor, for Half Nelson (2006); Keisha Castle-Hughes is the first millennial nominated for the Best Actress Oscar (for Whale Rider (2002), in the ceremony for 2003). Eddie Redmayne and Natalie Portman are the first persons born in the 1980s to have won in those two respective categories.

He is the third male born in 1980 or after to have received more than one Academy Award nomination for acting (for Half Nelson (2006), La La Land (2016), and Barbie (2023)). The first two are Jonah Hill (for Moneyball (2011) and The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)) and Eddie Redmayne (for The Theory of Everything (2014), which he won, and The Danish Girl (2015)).

Has a doberman named Lucho.

Keeps in touch with his Breaker High (1997) co-star Scott Vickaryous.

In 1992 he was the only boy with a group of girl dancers in a tv talent show.

Was ranked #23 on Entertainment Weekly's '30 Under 30' the actors list. (2008).