Elvis in a mall: The greatest acting lesson Ryan Gosling ever received at six years old
Ryan Gosling is one of the true sweethearts of Hollywood, charming global audiences with his youthful wit and charisma, bringing fun and vivacity to every project. Whether it be his stoic and brooding performance of K in Blade Runner 2049, the endearing romanticism of Sebastien in La La Land or the devastating loneliness of Dan in Half Nelson, the actor has a dizzying slate of projects that speaks to his endless talent and passion. Gosling is continuously evolving his craft, but he has said that his greatest acting lesson happened when he was just six years old, in the most unlikely of places – a mall.
Gosling has worked with some of the greatest modern directors of all time, collaborating with the likes of Damien Chazelle, Denis Villenueve, Terrence Malick, Greta Gerwig and Adam Mckay. After starting out as a child actor, Gosling was always destined for show business and was a natural performer from day one.
However, it was his performance in the 2004 film The Notebook that was the turning point in his career. Gosling played the smitten Noah alongside Rachel McAdams, bewitching audiences around the world and becoming one of the most beloved romantic dramas. Gosling then worked his way through a number of independent projects, earning critical acclaim for his role in Half Nelson and later adapting his skillset to studio projects.
Given the level of success that he has since achieved, it is only natural that Gosling would look back and reflect on the beginning of the journey and which experience taught him the most about his craft, tracing it back to an Elvis impersonation he saw from his uncle as a child.
When Gosling was just six years old, his uncle was living with his family and would regularly perform Elvis tribute acts in a nearby Ontario mall. Gosling walked into his room one day and saw him donning a sequinned white jumpsuit. He soon became involved in the charade himself, acting as the ‘security’ for the performance while his mother performed the role of backup singer.
When asked about the performance, Gosling said, “What I admired about what he was doing was that he looked nothing like Elvis… but my god, he just became him. And he would end every show with ‘Suspicious Minds’ and he would get on his knees and (often with tears in his eyes) he would sing to some imaginary woman and beg her not to leave. And we were transported from this mall in my small town in Ontario to that [scene]. And we were just in that moment every night and it was incredible. And honestly, it was one of the best acting lessons I’ve ever had”.
The entertainer gene is something that runs in few families, but in Gosling’s case, it seems as though the ability to dazzle an audience is something that both runs in his blood but was nurtured from a young age, encouraged to take part in his uncle’s show and learn a thing or two about truly committing to the bit.
