Ryan Gosling revealed that he knew the exact moment his longtime romantic partner Eva Mendes was the one for him.
The pair has been romantically linked since 2011 after co-starring together in the epic crime drama, The Place Beyond the Pines.
They have two daughters, Esmerelda–who was born in 2014—and Amanda–who was born two years later.
Before becoming a dad, Gosling told GQ in an interview that he never thought about fatherhood until Mendes told him she was pregnant.
The 42-year-old Golden Globe winner later explained further what he meant.
"That's not really true," he clarified, adding:
"I didn’t want to overshare, but now I also don’t want to misrepresent."
"I mean, it's true that I wasn't thinking about kids before I met her, but after I met Eva, I realized that I just didn't want to have kids without her."
"And there were moments on 'The Place Beyond the Pines' where we were pretending to be a family, and I didn't really want it to be pretend anymore."
"I realized that this would be a life I would be really lucky to have."
\u201c\u201cAfter I met Eva, I realized that I just didn\u2019t want to have kids without her. And there were moments on The Place Beyond the Pines where we were pretending to be a family, and I didn\u2019t really want it to be pretend anymore.\u201d - Ryan Gosling for GQ\n\nhttps://t.co/488519paW9\u201d— Film Updates (@Film Updates) 1685545105
Admirers were inspired to seek the same relationship goals.
\u201c@FilmUpdates @LaMari_xoxo Dear universe, a love like this, please \ud83d\ude2b\ud83d\ude4f\ud83c\udffe\u201d— Film Updates (@Film Updates) 1685545105
\u201c@FilmUpdates THIS OR NOTHING\u201d— Film Updates (@Film Updates) 1685545105
\u201cBoth Eva Mendes and Ryan Gosling have said they didn\u2019t wanna have kids if it wasn\u2019t with each other and that\u2019s the only kinda love I want. \n\nCan\u2019t settle for less than this.\u201d— ladidai \ud83d\udce3 follow @heyhearusout (@ladidai \ud83d\udce3 follow @heyhearusout) 1685562310
\u201c@FilmUpdates I\u2019m not jealous I promise \ud83e\udd72\u201d— Film Updates (@Film Updates) 1685545105
\u201c@FilmUpdates True love \ud83d\udc9c\u201d— Film Updates (@Film Updates) 1685545105
\u201c@FilmUpdates Hands-down my favourite movie EVER.. watching these two fall in love onset in real time was the most beautiful thing I ever seen and I\u2019m so happy they\u2019re still together \u2764\ufe0f\u201d— Film Updates (@Film Updates) 1685545105
\u201c@FilmUpdates This is how love is supposed to be. Not wanting to be with just anyone or make a marriage work with just anyone. It's about loving and building with a specific person that makes you happy. That's true love.\u201d— Film Updates (@Film Updates) 1685545105
\u201c@FilmUpdates When will it be my turn\u201d— Film Updates (@Film Updates) 1685545105
\u201c@FilmUpdates Ugh I love them so much always thought they were one of the best couples in Hollywood\u201d— Film Updates (@Film Updates) 1685545105
After finding success as a leading man in commercial films like La La Land and Blade Runner 2049, Gosling took a four-year absence from Hollywood to devote some time to being a family man after he and Mendes had their second daughter, Amanda.
"I wanted to spend as much time as I could with them," he said.
"I would never want to go back, you know?"
"I’m glad I didn’t have control over my destiny in that way, because it was so much better than I ever had dreamed for myself.”
After his brief hiatus, Gosling was back on the big screen with movies like the 2022 action thriller The Gray Man and the upcoming Barbie movie inspired by the Mattel fashion doll of the same name.
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