‘I apologise for speaking ignorantly’: Oliver Stone backtracks over Barbie comments

Oliver Stone has apologised for his criticism of the Greta Gerwig-directed blockbuster Barbie as “shit” and “part of this infantilisation of Hollywood”, saying that he now “appreciated the film for its originality and its themes”.

Stone was responding to a story in Deadline on Sunday that had unearthed comments he had made in an interview with City AM in June 2023, shortly before Barbie’s release. In the City AM interview, Stone said: “Ryan Gosling is wasting his time if he’s doing that shit for money. He should be doing more serious films. He shouldn’t be a part of this infantilisation of Hollywood.”

Stone added: “Now it’s all fantasy, fantasy, fantasy, including all the war pictures: fantasy, fantasy.”

However in a post on X (formerly Twitter) Stone said that he had not seen Barbie at the time he made the comments and “had little to no knowledge of the project beyond its title”.

He went on to say: “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 apologise for speaking ignorantly.”

He added: “Barbie’s box office greatly boosted the morale of our business, which was welcome. I wish Greta and the entire Barbie team good fortune at the Oscars.”