Barbie: Rob Thomas Opens Up About Ken’s Matchbox Twenty Cover

Barbie is now in theaters and while she — or rather the eponymous doll — is everything, Ken is certainly not “just” Ken. Ryan Gosling’s Ken has become a standout favorite in the film — and not just for his performance of “I’m Just Ken” that became an internet sensation ahead of Barbie’s release. But music does play an important part of the movie for both the Barbies and the Kens, including the memorable inclusion of a Matchbox Twenty song. Now, Matchbox Twenty’s Rob Thomas opens up about that memorable moment in Barbie and how it came to be.

Warning: spoilers for Barbie beyond this point.

In Barbie, after a trip into the Real World, Ken (Gosling) returns to Barbieland and transforms it into a very male-oriented “Kendom” where horses, sports, beer, and a love for The Godfather reigns supreme. He’s also replaced the Barbieland “national anthem” of sorts, Indigo Girls’ “Closer to Fine”, with Matchbox Twenty’s “Push”, which ends up having a major moment when, in an attempt to make a move to rescue and restore Barbieland, Barbie (Margot Robbie) sits and listens while Ken sings “Push” to her for hours and hours on end. While the song is actually about an emotionally abusive ex-girlfriend, Gerwig told USA TODAY that the song was one she loved growing up, and once she came to understand the song as an adult, it felt like a “story song”.

“Growing up, I loved that song,” Gerwig said. “I was like, ‘This is my rock ‘n’ roll.’ And it wasn’t until college that I actually thought, ‘What is this song about?’ Just thinking about 13-year-old me singing along and really meaning it, I was like, ‘That is so interesting.’ I looked it up and, in a way, [Thomas] was playing a character. It’s almost like a story song.”

For Thomas, the song’s inclusion in the movie is “hilarious” and he’s happy with how the song’s moment in the film is being received by fans.

“I want to preface this by saying that I thought it was hilarious. But in Bring It On, (Kirsten Dunst’s character) has this douchey boyfriend. And there’s a scene where he was in his dorm room with a Matchbox Twenty poster in the background. There was a whole period during the ’90s where the more successful we got, the bigger target we were. We were an easy takedown,” Thomas said. “When I got the call for Barbie, they told me, ‘Ken’s by the fireside, he’s playing the song and it’s his favorite band.’ So, I did this thinking I’d be the butt of the joke, and I was fine with that. I’m pretty thick-skinned. But Julie Greenwald (from Atlantic Records) came to the Hollywood Bowl a month or two ago. She had just seen the movie and was like, ‘You come out of it loving Ken and loving ‘Push.” And I was like, ‘Aww. Alright, really good!’”

Greta Gerwig Refused to Cast Anyone other Than Ryan Gosling for Ken

While Gosling has come away from Barbie with a lot of critical and audience praise for his performance as Ken, initially the actor couldn’t picture himself in the role — but Gerwig has previously said that there was no one else she could have envisioned to play the part.

“It was only ever Ryan Gosling,” Gerwig explained. “Margot and I wouldn’t take no for an answer.”

About Barbie

In Barbie, to live in Barbie Land is to be a perfect being in a perfect place. Unless you have a full-on existential crisis. Or you’re a Ken. From Oscar-nominated writer/director Greta Gerwig comes Barbie, which hit theaters on July 21st. Barbie stars Oscar-nominees Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling as Barbie and Ken, alongside America Ferrera , Kate McKinnon , Michael Cera , Ariana Greenblatt , Issa Rae , Rhea Perlman , and Will Ferrell. The film also stars Ana Cruz Kayne, Emma Mackey , Hari Nef , Alexandra Shipp , Kingsley Ben-Adir , Simu Liu , Ncuti Gatwa , Scott Evans , Jamie Demetriou , Connor Swindells, Sharon Rooney, Nicola Coughlan, Ritu Arya , Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter Dua Lipa and Oscar-winner Helen Mirren . Gerwig directed Barbie from a screenplay by Gerwig & Oscar nominee Noah Baumbach , based on Barbie by Mattel . 

Barbie is in theaters now.