#BoyfriendMaterial: The Ryan Gosling Podcast

The Fall Guy is in theaters now, so we took a #BoyfriendMaterial field trip to watch it and record this spoiler-filled episode! After welcoming in new listeners in the mailbag — and Gosling’s new era of acting — we catch up on his busy past few months: hosting SNL, presenting and performing at the Oscars, and much more. We admire the stunt work and appreciating the meta levels on display in The Fall Guy, as well as how it blends elements of past Gosling movies. We talk about how cool Gosling looks — almost improbably so — and how fun the stunt dog Jean Claude is. Joey laments a dropped thread/running joke and talks about his favorite moment in the movie (and why it worked so well). We make our picks for the most and least boyfriend material moments and play through all of our games. With no Gosling movies slated for release until 2026, why not join us over on 2 Fast 2 Forever?

At long last, #BoyfriendMaterial is back to talk about Greta Gerwig's Barbie, and we hope this episode is Kenough for you. As Ryan Gosling returns to a supporting role, so, too, do we return to do more promo for our ongoing show, 2 Fast 2 Forever.  We talk about the bonus content that Barbie is getting for its IMAX release, cover "Canadian Gos on the Los" to look at Gosling's upcoming films, and dig into a lot of Barbie-related trivia (most of which is about Gosling).  We start with our very few critiques of the movie before turning the episode into a love-fest as we analyze the target demo(s) for Barbie, determine where on the scale from Mattel's dream movie to Greta Gerwig's dream movie this falls, and lament Hollywood learning the wrong lessons from this movie's success.  We discuss Ken as horse boy, Gosling's many great lines and improvised moments, and Greta Gerwig's "Movie Church." We wonder whether Barbie gets a cathartic release (the way Ken does) -- and whether or not that matters -- and debate whether or not this is Ryan Gosling's best performance. Joe has a revelation while talking about this movie's soundtrack. We play our many, many games.

Hey girl, you feel that? That's an all-new episode of #BoyfriendMaterial about The Gray Man, which marks Ryan Gosling's triumphant return to acting! We're back with a new episode after nearly three years away from the podcast and four years without a new Ryan Gosling movie. After we take a look at his (stacked!) list of upcoming movies, we dive into The Gray Man, now available on Netflix. We talk about Ryan Gosling as John Wick, praise Ana de Armas, and find ourselves not quite sold on Chris Evans. We wonder if Ryan Gosling is the best looking man to ever be shot with a lens flare, admire stuff that we've never seen in an action movie before, and return to the long list of games we totally forgot about. Grab a bowl of cereal and a pair of headphones because #BoyfriendMaterial is back, girl!

After last week's clunker in Nothing Too Good for a Cowboy, we needed something strong to close out the regular run of #BoyfriendMaterial, and we found exactly what we needed in Frankenstein and Me. Before we officially announce the Gossies, count down our favorite Ryan Gosling movies, and burn through a clip show episode, we're headed all the way back to 1996, where a fresh-faced Ryan Gosling was already wooing the ladies with his great hair and killer smile. He isn't the star of Frankenstein and Me, but that doesn't matter. In the end, this is a very sweet and charming kids movie (that still plays well today), and he's great as the best friend of the lead character. From the time he rolls on screen on his bicycle to when he helps try to bring a monster (back?) to life -- and in every classic horror film recreation in between -- Gosling is a star in the making. Also, Burt Reynolds is in this.

Nothing Too Good for a Cowboy isn't Ryan Gosling's worst movie, but it's certainly one of his most uneventful. When we tore through Zac Efron's early work on #ZacAttack, we reveled in finding madness in his early movies. While we've found some of those gems in Gosling's early movies, this one grinded us to a nearly screeching halt. The most surprising thing about Nothing Too Good for a Cowboy is the creative team that put this together... or maybe it's the fact that this movie became a TV show that ran for 26 episodes over two years, and neither of us had heard of it... or maybe that's it's a western set in the in-between era of 1939-1945, where westerns don't normally exist, and which should make it feel unique, but it only makes it feel a bit too modern... or maybe it's...

Before Ryan Gosling was Neil Armstrong, before he was Seb, before he was the Driver, he was Young Hercules. For fifty. Episodes. Of. Television. Made more than 20 years ago and in no way designed to be binged, Young Hercules perpetuates the same story, over and over again, for roughly 17 hours of runtime. Joey saved Joe Two the gauntlet of this watch, hand-picking the series' six best and wildest episodes to discuss on the podcast. They talk about Ryan Gosling's "fire inside," his portrayal of "Dark Hercules" in a dream episode, and his ability to rock out on a lyre. Joey also recaps the best moments that Joe Two didn't sit through, and the two lament that every episode winds up being the same thing: Gosling and his two doofus friends being chased around and tricked by Ares, Discord, and Strife, all set to far too many sound effects.

We are the Titans! Mighty, mighty Titans! Two episodes after talking about Ryan Gosling as QB in The Slaughter Rule, it's time for him to flip to the other side of the ball and line up on defense in Remember the Titans. In this episode, we talk about Gosling getting burnt over and over again in coverage, what position he's best suited for, and what this movie could look like if he played the role of Sunshine.

Considering how incredible Ryan Gosling is in the Believer, it's not too hard to realize why talking about a Neo-Nazi in 2019 isn't a fun topic. We give it the old college try anyway as we admire Gosling's ability to speak Hebrew and his absolute dedication to the portrayal of this conflicted man. Also, Joey pitches a comedy sketch idea inspired by this movie, just to make sure this episode's tone isn't somber from start to finish.

Ryan Gosling diehards know he'd star in a football movie in Remember the Titans (coming up in two episodes), but did you know he stepped up to QB in The Slaughter Rule? In this episode, we learn that one of the Joes really connected with the movie, while the other didn't. They debate whether the well-acted movie is too shallow in other regards, whether we've seen this type of story before, and whether enough was done with storylines and relationships outside of the Gosling/David Morse centerpiece.

It’s right there in the title, but it’s still a bit of a surprise that Murder by Numbers is our second “Ryan Gosling as a murderer” movie in a row. It’s clear now that by the time he’d go on to portray Robert Durst, Ryan Gosling had quite the history of cinematic murders under his belt. In this episode, we talk about the film’s astronomical budget (despite its made-for-TV look) and its legendary cinematographer (you’ll never believe who it is!). We also talk about what may be the greatest Ryan Gosling moment in a movie to date, his portrayal as a cool high school kid, and his burgeoning romance with Sandra Bullock. It’s hard to say whether or not Murder by Numbers is a good movie, but after last week’s mixed bag in The United States of Leland, it’s difficult to go anywhere but up.

Several episodes ago (or several years from now, in a normal, non-podcast timeline), Ryan Gosling played a murderer in (essentially) Robert Durst. The United States of Leland shows where murdering Gosling got his start. (Or does it? Is there more murder in Gosling's career? We'll find out together!) In this episode, we discuss the tender side of Gosling as a misunderstood murderer, the sadness of his eyes under that floppy head of hair, and the veritable "who's who" of actors who would go on to become stars. We also reflect back on our guesses for this movie's most and least #BoyfriendMaterial moments and wonder if we came anywhere close to the truth. As we enter the home stretch of #BoyfriendMaterial, there's very little charted waters ahead of us. What will the next nine episodes hold for us? Hopefully, more Gosling as a murderer!

The Notebook has been the White Whale of #BoyfriendMaterial. From the very beginning of the podcast, Joey has been looking forward to finally watching what may be *the* Ryan Gosling movie, while Joe Two counted down the days until they got to talk about it. The time has finally come, after the Joes watched it together and recorded live in-person. Did Joey like it? Did he cry? Was the movie worth the wait? Listen and find out!

We've had a good run on #BoyfriendMaterial so far, but we were bound to hit a clunker sooner or later, which we did with Stay. While it's not a completely terrible movie -- and Joey doesn't regret calling it the worst movie he saw all year -- its smug confidence in how cool it is makes this the worst Ryan Gosling movie to date. In this episode, we talk about the incredibly stacked cast, wonder where it all went wrong, and try to imagine a version of this movie directed by David Fincher. (Spoiler: it's this movie, but good.)

Not only is Half Nelson one of Ryan Gosling's best performances (netting him his first Oscar nom), it's also the feature film debut of the directorial team behind Captain Marvel! While we still have some big movies left to come (here's looking at you, The Notebook), Half Nelson sort of represents a pivot point between the more obscure half of Gosling's career and his vault into superstardom. We discuss the many weird things Gosling has in his hands, his white boy dancing, and our many worries while watching this movie.

Fracture is the most brain mush movie we’ve had so far in #BoyfriendMaterial, which means Joey hates it and Joe Two loves it. This movie is basically two hours of people saying, "Hey! How dumb does Ryan Gosling look? Pretty dumb, right?" In this episode, we talk about the movie’s connections to The Devil’s Advocate, Ryan Gosling’s sudden obsession with this case, the movie’s wild leaps through time and relationships... and wonder if any of that really matters in the end, considering how little this movie adheres to everything we hold so dear on this podcast.

Lars and the Real Girl falls in the heart of a real great run of #BoyfriendMaterial movies, and it's exactly what the doctor ordered after Blue Valentine. Not fully a comedy, not fully a drama, this movie straddles the line between laughter and tears and romance in a way that only a weirdo Ryan Gosling movie can. In this episode, we talk about how this town is the kindest town in history, whether or not this could be a Fight Club situation, and whether or not this movie is a secret prequel to the movie Drive. As always, we recount the movie's most and least #BoyfriendMaterial moments, but this time with a twist: how good of a boyfriend is Ryan Gosling to a Real Doll?

Who’s ready to be emotionally devastated? Blue Valentine is one of Ryan Gosling’s best movies, one of his most beautiful, and one of his most depressing. It’s the first of two team-ups for Gosling and Derek Cianfrance (before The Gos Beyond the Pines), and boy does Cianfrance have a vision for Gosling as a dirtbag! In this episode, we recount the times we cried, talk about the most and least #BoyfriendMaterial moments of the movie, and the crazy behind-the-scenes making-of details from this movie. We also talk about how Derek Cianfrance wants to be Richard Linklater, and how much of a bummer it is that he hasn’t made more movies.

Before Andrew Jarecki made The Jinx, before we all felt in love with Burpin’ Bobby Durst, we saw Ryan Gosling and Kirsten Dunst in All Good Things. Without the aid of resident historian Mike Manzi, we find ourselves thrown all the way back to the 1970s and 1980s, trying to make sense of Robert Durst’s (or, ahem, David Marks’s) murky history. In this episode, we ask, “Hey Gos, what’s in your hands?”, worry about poor sweet Kirsten Dunst, and find ourselves among NBC comedy royalty (via the likes of Nick Offerman, Kristen Wiig, and William Jackson Harper) in a decidedly unfunny story. We hit the trifecta of other versions of Ryan Gosling — Gosling as a child, Gosling as an old man, and Gosling as a woman — and pray for a future in which Ryan Gosling re-enacts The Jinx so that we can hear him say, to everyone and yet no one in particular, “What the hell did I do? Killed them all, of course.”

After a quick detour to modern day in First Gos, #BoyfriendMaterial is back on schedule and ready to stomp some heads into a pulp as we talk about Drive. In this episode, we compare and contrast the two NWR/Gosling team-ups, wonder whether the movie would be nearly as cool without its iconic music (spoiler: it isn’t), and discover the alternate ending that never happened. We also blow the dust off the overstuffed mailbag, search Google for Ryan Gosling fashion tips, and play what may be the most logged version of the Letterboxd game we’ll ever play. Do you understand? Got a thought? Hate mail? Want to share a picture of cereal? Do you read this? Let us know! Email us at boyfriendmaterial@cageclub.me.

Just like we did for the newest episode of #MagicMics, we're taking a detour to modern day (or is it the 1960s?) to talk about Ryan Gosling's newest movie: First Man. In this episode, we blast off into the outer space of podcasting to talk about Gosling's portrayal of Neil Armstrong, his re-teaming with Damien Chazelle, and what movies may be on the horizon for #BoyfriendMaterial. We also discuss whether or not this movie is overly Oscar bait-y, whether it tells a satisfying story of Neil Armstrong's life, and who the movie's true shining star (pun... maybe intended?) is. Got a thought? Hate mail? Want to share a picture of cereal? Do you read this? Let us know! Email us at boyfriendmaterial@cageclub.me.