Greta Gerwig talks 'Barbie' best director Oscar snub, adapting 'Narnia'

By Carson Blackwelder

Greta Gerwig is addressing what was widely perceived as one of the biggest snubs of the 2024 Oscars nominations.

The filmmaker earned a nomination for best adapted screenplay for "Barbie" along with her writing partner and partner in life, Noah Baumbach, but many fans were upset when she was excluded from the best director category.

"A friend's mom said to me, 'I can't believe you didn't get nominated,'" she told Time in an interview published Wednesday. "I said, 'But I did. I got an Oscar nomination.' She was like, 'Oh, that's wonderful for you!' I was like, 'I know!'"

Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images

Ryan Gosling, Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie attend the press junket and photo call for "Barbie" in Beverly Hills, Calif., June 25, 2023.

While Gerwig isn't focusing on what she wasn't nominated for and instead on what she is up for, that didn't stop Ryan Gosling, who played Ken in "Barbie," from speaking out about her snub -- as well as that of Margot Robbie, who played the titular doll but failed to snag a best actress nomination -- while reacting to his own best supporting actor nomination.

In a statement obtained by ABC News, Gosling said he was "extremely honored" to be recognized but that "there is no Ken without Barbie, and there is no Barbie movie without Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie, the two people most responsible for this history-making, globally-celebrated film."

"No recognition would be possible for anyone on the film without their talent, grit and genius," his statement continued, adding, "To say that I'm disappointed that they are not nominated in their respective categories would be an understatement."

"Barbie" earned a total of eight Oscar nominations this year, including best picture -- for which Robbie is nominated as a producer -- and best supporting actress for America Ferrera.

Gerwig, speaking with Time this week, expressed her excitement for both her and Robbie garnering Oscar nominations, despite them not being in the categories people expected.

Jaap Buitendijk/Warner Bros. Entertainment

Margot Robbie, Alexandra Shipp, Michael Cera, Greta Gerwig (foreground), America Ferrera and Ariana Greenblatt on the set of "Barbie."

"Of course I wanted it for Margot," she said. "But I'm just happy we all get to be there together."

Elsewhere in the interview, Gerwig also discussed her next project, adapting C.S. Lewis' iconic "Chronicles of Narnia" series for Netflix, for which she said she wrote a draft before ever working on "Barbie."

"Knowing that I'd laid the groundwork for Narnia and wanted to return to it -- that's probably something I set up for myself psychologically," she said. "Because I know the right thing, for me anyway, is to keep making movies. Whatever happens, good or bad, you've got to keep going."

Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos described Gerwig's approach to Lewis' work as "rooted in faith" and a "bigger and bolder" interpretation than fans have experienced before.

Gerwig teased, "It's connected to the folklore and fairy stories of England, but it's a combination of different traditions."

"I'm interested in embracing the paradox of the worlds that Lewis created, because that's what’s so compelling about them," she added.