Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell will also perform their “Barbie” ballad, “What Was I Made For?,” at the awards show.
“I’m Just Ken” — an introspective ’80s-style power rock ballad about what it’s like to be a sidekick in a Barbie-dominated world, written and produced by Ronson and Andrew Wyatt — became the unofficial anthem of the summer blockbuster. “I’m just Ken/ Where I see love, she sees a friend/ What will it take for her to see the man behind the tan and fight for me?” Gosling sings in the film.
It was nominated for best original song, while Gosling’s portrayal of a vacuous Ken earned him a nod for best supporting actor. But in February, Gosling told Variety that the Academy had not asked him to perform the song, though he’d be open to it. This week’s announcement settles that question.
Other scheduled performances include Jon Batiste, with “It Never Went Away” from “American Symphony”; Becky G, with “The Fire Inside” from “Flamin’ Hot,” which was written by Diane Warren; and Scott George and the Osage Singers, with “Wahzhazhe (A Song for My People)” from “Killers of the Flower Moon.”
Ronson told The Washington Post in August that Gosling’s rock vocals and the on-screen performance helped “I’m Just Ken” break into the mainstream. The 3-minute, 42-second song has more than 108 million streams on Spotify and briefly charted on Billboard’s Hot 100 in August.
Gosling’s upcoming performance represents another celebratory moment for “Barbie,” which injected new life into the box office and helped create one of 2023’s biggest pop culture moments with the “Barbenheimer” phenomenon. The film, which centers on Barbie (Margot Robbie) and Ken (Gosling) leaving Barbieland and dealing with the consequences the real world, earned more than $1.4 billion at the global box office.
Many awards-season enthusiasts have been waiting to see which statues “Barbie” would rack up for its dollhouse, too. The film won an award for cinematic and box office achievement at the Golden Globes in January, besting “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour,” “Oppenheimer” and “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.” Eilish and O’Connell’s song “What Was I Made For?” won a Grammy for best song written for visual media, defeating “I’m Just Ken” and “Dance the Night” by Dua Lipa — also a song from “Barbie.”
For the Oscars, “Barbie” has multiple nominations, including for best picture, costume design and production design, among others. The film also has an adapted screenplay nomination, which came despite Warner Bros. reportedly campaigning for the film to be considered an original script.
