Jack Black calls Ryan Gosling his 'archenemy' after Oscars song snub: 'Always snacking on my potatoes'
Jack Black calls Ryan Gosling his 'archenemy' after Oscars song snub: 'Always snacking on my potatoes'
Emlyn TravisFri, April 3, 2026 at 4:33 PM UTC
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Jack Black; Ryan GoslingCredit: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic; Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty
Jack Black is involved in a fiery, potentially one-sided feud with Ryan Gosling — and it’s all the Academy’s fault.
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie star revealed that he considers the Project Hail Mary actor to be his "archenemy" after Gosling's Barbie anthem "I'm Just Ken" received an Original Song nomination at the 2024 Oscars and Black's Bowser ballad "Peaches" did not.
"Bowser did not get any attention or love from the Academy," Black explained on Thursday’s episode of The Tonight Show. "And I was like, 'Dude, "Peaches" is a banger.' Everyone's singing [it]. Your kids are singing [it]. For a second, I was like, 'I think we might get a nominash.' And, sure enough, we did not. It was a goose egg."
Bowser performs 'Peaches' in 'The Super Mario Bros. Movie'Credit: Nintendo and Illumination
The Tenacious D rocker even admitted that he "campaigned for it for a little bit" but, like Bowser marrying Peach, it just wasn't meant to be.
"And then not only did I not get him a nominash, but my archenemy, 'The Goz,' Ryan Gosling, did get a nominash!" Black exclaimed. "I was like, 'Son of a biscuit. This Gosling, always snacking on my potatoes.'"
Ken performs 'I'm Just Ken' in 'Barbie'Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures
To be clear, "Peaches" was not among the 15 tracks that were originally shortlisted for the category in December 2023, meaning that it wasn't going to receive a nominash even without the involvement of Gosling's Kenergy-fuelled anthem. Furthermore, it's the songwriters who actually receive the nomination, not the performers, which means Black's fury should instead be directed at Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt, not Gosling.However, that didn't stop Black from holding a grudge against his fellow actor. "Look, I love 'I'm Just Ken.' Love Barbie movie," he prefaced, "but I can't pretend like there wasn't a little professional jealousy."
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In fact, Black was so envious that he wrote an entire song from Bowser's perspective that he performed on the late-night show. "Just imagine me in a full Bowser costume right now," he prefaced, before singing, "I can't believe / I wasn't nominated / Bowser shall have his revenge!'"
That jealousy must've only compounded when Gosling performed "I'm Just Ken" with Slash, Mark Ronson, Wolfgang Van Halen, and a bunch of his fellow Kens — including Simu Liu, Ncuti Gatwa, Kingsley Ben-Adir, and Scott Evans — at the Oscars.
A Barbie song did end up winning an Oscar that evening, but it wasn't "I'm Just Ken." Billie Eilish's poignant "What Was I Made For?" took home the prize instead.
Watch Black discuss his Bowser beef with Gosling in the clip above.
on Entertainment Weekly
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
