Emily Blunt and Ryan Gosling Keep Barbenheimer Alive With Rivalry at Oscars

Emily Blunt and Ryan Gosling kept the cultural phenomenon Barbenheimer going at the 2024 Oscars with a little rivalry onstage.

Before taking a moment to honor the stunt community in film, the actors decided to share a few digs at each other following the success of their respective blockbuster films over the summer, Oppenheimer and Barbie.

Gosling kicked off the bit by giving Blunt a sassy hello, to which she responded, “A bit of a frosty hello?”

“Not at all,” he said. “No, I’m just happy that we can finally put this Barbenheimer rivalry behind us.” Blunt sarcastically agreed, “That’s right. Here’s Ken and Kitty [Oppenheimer] just leaving all that fodder in the dust.”

But then the actress decided to take another jab, referencing Barbie‘s lack of awards this season. “And the way this award season has turned out, wasn’t that much of a rivalry. Just let it go,” Blunt added with a laugh.

However, Gosling wasn’t going to let her get the last word. “You know, I think I kind of figured out why they called it Barbenheimer and they didn’t call it a Oppenbarbie. … Well, I think you guys are at the tail end of that because you were riding Barbie‘s coattails all summer,” he said proudly as Margot Robbie laughed in the audience and the crowd joined together with an “Ohhhh.”

“Thanks for ‘Kensplaining’ that to me,” Blunt quipped. “All right, mister, I need to paint my abs on to get nominated. You don’t see Robert Downey [Jr.] doing that,” she also yelled as Gosling tried to pull the microphone from her.

“You’re kidding? You’re kidding,” Gosling yelled as Blunt looked jokingly agitated. “This is insane, Emily. This has gotta stop. We have to squash this. We’re here to celebrate the stunt community.” The actress added, “Massively.”

Barbenheimer became a viral cultural phenomenon last summer when both Greta Gerwig’s Barbie and Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer were released in theaters on the same day, July 21, leading to a massive box office weekend.

The 96th Academy Awards, hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, were held March 10 at the Dolby Theatre at Ovation Hollywood. Oppenheimer scored seven wins, including best picture, and Barbie earned one award for best song for the track “What Was I Made For?” by Billie Eilish and Finneas. Find the full winners list here, and check out the red carpet arrivals.