Glen Powell has no time for those who attempt to pit him against fellow actor Ryan Gosling.
On Tuesday, Powell issued a playful but firm response to a Wrap report that cited an unnamed Hollywood producer who called him “most definitely an up-and-coming movie star.”
The compliment, however, included a dig at Gosling, with the producer also noting: “unlike an actor like Ryan Gosling whose appeal is mostly limited to female audiences, Glen appeals to both females and male.”
Powell’s response included a wink at Gosling’s Oscar-nominated portrayal of Ken in the 2023 blockbuster “Barbie” ― which, incidentally, raked in more than $1.4 billion at the worldwide box office and won raves from critics across the globe.
“Gosling is a legend. I’m just Glen,” he wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
As of Wednesday morning, Powell’s post had received more than 358,000 likes and drawn a plethora of comments from fans, most of them positive.
“I have a man crush on both Glen and Ryan so I’m not sure who wrote this article but they’re wrong,” one person wrote. “We love both of them. And they should be in a buddy cop movie together.”
Added another: “Two great people can coexist. Commendable standing up for Ryan.”
Gosling comparisons aside, there’s no question that Powell has risen to the top of Hollywood’s A-list in the past year following a trio of acclaimed performances in “Anyone but You,” “Hit Man” and, most recently, this summer’s blockbuster “Twisters.”
Some critics have deemed him an heir apparent of Tom Cruise, with whom he co-starred in 2022’s “Top Gun: Maverick.”
“You’ve got Glen Powell and [Timothée] Chalamet ushering in a new talent base of bankable stars,” analyst Jeff Bock of Exhibitor Relations told Variety in March. “That’s wonderful for audiences, but even more so, a massive relief for the industry, which has been relying on aging talent for far too long.”
Powell recently completed filming on “Huntington,” a thriller co-starring Ed Harris and Margaret Qualley. He’s also slated to star in forthcoming Hulu series “Chad Powers,” as well as a new adaptation of Stephen King’s 1982 novel “The Running Man.”