Oscar winner Oliver Stone apologises to Ryan Gosling, Barbie team for 'ignorant' remarks

Oscar winning director Oliver Stone has issued a formal apology to the team of Barbie. Stone, who has written and directed four Academy Award winning films - namely, Platoon (1986), Wall Street (1987), Born on the Fourth of July (1989) and JFK (1991) - recently called out a leading publication for running a "sensationalistic" take regarding his comments on Barbie, which he had made prior to the film's release. The apology note not only carried clarifications over the issue but also affirmed the film's unique premise and execution.

Oscar Stone recants his original statements about Barbie

Oscar Stone recently took to his official X handle to issue an elaborate note, apologising for making public comments about Greta Gerwig's Barbie, before giving the film a watch. The director has openly admitted that his statements were "ignorant", also expressing how the film was rather different to what he had anticipated.

Excerpts from the note read, “...At the time, I was promoting my nuclear documentary in Europe and had little to no knowledge of the project beyond its title. I was able to see Barbie in a theater back in July and appreciated the film for its originality and its themes. I found the filmmakers' approach certainly different than what I expected. I apologize for speaking ignorantly…"

What had Oscar Stone originally said about Barbie?

As per an Entertainment Tonight report, upon hearing about a Barbie film in the works, particularly Ryan Gosling being involved in it, Stone had expressed how he felt that the actor was "wasting his time" as he contributed to the infantilization of Hollywood." In a June 2023 interview with City AM, Stone had said, “Ryan Gosling is wasting his time if he’s doing (Barbie) for money...He should be doing more serious films. He shouldn't be a part of this infantilization of Hollywood. Now it's all fantasy, fantasy, fantasy, including all the war pictures, fantasy, fantasy.”

Stone has now admitted how the statements made at the time were uninformed.