Three-time Oscar nominee Ryan Gosling shares two children with his partner Eva Mendes, whom he has called his hero.
When Gosling took the stage for his "I'm Just Ken" performance at the 2024 Oscars, he gave credit to his and Mendes's daughters, Esmeralda and Amada.
"They gave me some tips and some notes, all great notes," Gosling told People, adding, "They are such a huge part of this for me. It was my girls' interest in Barbie and disinterest in Ken that got me into this in the first place. It was beautiful to have them there at the end."
In the last decade, Gosling has returned to acting after taking a break from his Hollywood career to be with his family.
"The Fall Guy" actor told Men's Health in April that Mendes and their daughters, Esmeralda and Amada, guide him.
"It always comes back to family first," Gosling said. "I don't think I'll regret anything professionally, but I do think when it comes to Eva [Mendes] and the girls, they come first."
Get to know Gosling's family below.
Eva Mendes
Gosling and Mendes starred together as Luke Glanton and Romina, parents of a young son, in the 2012 crime drama "The Place Beyond the Pines," a pivotal project for the two actors.
"After I met Eva, I realized that I just didn't want to have kids without her," Gosling told GQ in May 2023. "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."
In a 2019 interview with Women's Health, Mendes, also a fashion designer, said meeting Gosling also shaped her thoughts on parenthood and starting a family.
"Ryan Gosling happened. I mean, falling in love with him," Mendes said. "Then it made sense for me to have … not kids, but his kids. It was very specific to him."
After the 2024 Oscars, Mendes shared supportive social media posts for Gosling, calling him "my man."
The couple tend to be very private when it comes to their children, and Mendes said that even though she and Gosling have high-profile jobs as actors, they try not to involve their kids in their professions.
"I don't let them see me put attention to how I dress," she told Women's Health. "They've never seen me get ready for something; they've never seen me at work."
"I'm just Mom," Mendes added. "And I'm more than happy to just be Mom."
In early 2024, Mendes revealed plans to release a children's book that she said was inspired by her daughters.
"My latest project is a true labor of love. Being the Mami to my two little girls has inspired me to write my first picture book DESI, MAMI & THE NEVER ENDING WORRIES," Mendes wrote in a Feb. 22 Instagram post.
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Esmeralda Amada
Mendes and Gosling welcomed their eldest daughter Esmeralda in 2014.
In a 2018 interview with "Good Morning America," Mendes said loved watching her then-4-year-old daughter express herself through fashion.
"She dresses herself and comes up with some pretty interesting things, like she'll just do the one-sleeve [on her pajamas] and we're like, 'Amazing,'" Mendes said. "Just to see what they do naturally is exciting because I'm just mom when I'm with them."
Amada Lee
The couple welcomed their second daughter Amada in 2016.
Gosling told Ellen DeGeneres in a 2016 interview that Amada means "beloved" in Spanish.
Although Mendes is active online, she and Gosling choose not to share photos of their daughters on social media.
"I have always had a clear boundary when it comes to my man and my kids," Mendes wrote to a fan on social media in 2020. "I'll talk about them of course -- with limits -- but I won't post pictures of our daily life."
"Since my children are still so little and don't understand what posting their image really means, I don't have their consent," Mendes added. "And I won't post their image until they're old enough to give me consent."