Julia Roberts Praises Ryan Gosling’s ‘Dimension’ as Ken in “Barbie”: ‘It’s Remarkable’ (Exclusive)
The actress and jewelry designer named 'Barbie' as one of her favorite films of the year
Julia Roberts is singing Ryan Gosling's praises!
The Leave the World Behind star, 56, spoke exclusively to PEOPLE about her favorite Oscar-nominated films while attending an intimate dinner hosted by Chopard at the Château Marmont in Los Angeles on Friday, to celebrate the launch of her Chopard x Julia Roberts collection.
Gosling, a Best Supporting Actor nominee, is scheduled to perform "I'm Just Ken" during the Academy Awards on Sunday.
"I met Ryan recently, a few times, and when you bring such dimension to a performance, it's remarkable," the Chopard global ambassador said, adding of the Greta Gerwig-directed film, "Barbie was so unique and new."
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Roberts, who won an Oscar for Best Actress in 2001 for her performance in Erin Brokovich, understands just how much the nominees are going through. "The craziness, the getting ready," she said. "You just have to embrace it all, almost like a sporting event, as you're going through it."
That includes having a thick skin when it comes to social media chatter. Recently, a six-year old interview, in which she admitted that she was hurt by Instagram comments strangers made about a photo of her that her niece Emma Roberts posted, went viral again.
Related: Ryan Gosling Is Set to Perform Barbie Song 'I'm Just Ken' at 2024 Oscars
In the 2018 Harper's Bazaar interview, Roberts opened up about how joining Instagram has impacted her life.
"One weekend morning, Emma slept over, and we got up and were having tea and playing cards and having this beautiful morning, and then a couple of days later she posted a picture of us," she said at the time. "And the number of people who felt absolutely required to talk about how terrible I looked in the picture — that I’m not aging well, that I look like a man, why would she even post a picture like this when I look that terrible!"
Related: Julia Roberts Pens Sweet Birthday Message for 'Magical' Niece Emma Roberts: 'Oh How I Love You'
Roberts said that she was "amazed" that the comments impacted her so much. "I’m a 50-year-old woman and I know who I am, and still my feelings got hurt. I was sad that people couldn’t see the point of it, the sweetness of it, the absolute shining joy of that photo. I thought, “What if I was 15?' " she said in the interview.
While she was surprised the clip surfaced again, she understands why it resonates. "So many people think that's a new interview. But I clearly say, 'I'm a 50-year-old woman.' Well, I'm 56," Roberts told PEOPLE. "But the fact that we are still here, and this vitriol is still happening six years later, shows how little progress we've made."
During the dinner, on International Women's Day, she reminded people to do their part, toasting the women in the room and telling the men, "All of you gents, hold us up a little higher."
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