“She was trying her hardest to be unattractive”: Eva Mendes- Ryan Gosling Love Story Would’ve Ended Before It Began if It Wasn’t for Director Derek Cianfrance

SUMMARY

• After Ryan Gosling recommended Eva Mendes for her role in The Place Beyond the Pines, the actress failed to meet one expectation.
• Despite her failure, director Derek Cianfrance took the bold decision to cast her beside Gosling as onscreen lovers.
• From being co-stars to friends, Gosling and Mendes developed romance which transformed into their long-standing marriage.

Eva Mendes and Ryan Gosling’s relationship has undoubtedly been one of the very few long-standing marriages in Hollywood. Believe it or not, director Derek Cianfrance had a major role to play in their romance. While it certainly required Gosling to ask out and propose to Mendes, it was Cianfrance’s decision that turned the co-stars into real-life lovers. 

Ryan Gosling and Eva Mendes in The Place Beyond the Pines | image: Focus Features

Apparently, while Ryan Gosling met the love of his life on the set of The Place Beyond the Pines, Eva Mendes wasn’t initially sought to play his onscreen lover, until Gosling recommended her to Derek Cianfrance. Thereafter, although Mendes failed miserably to meet one expectation of the role, it was Cianfrance’s decision that ultimately cast her and sparked the flame of romance between the co-stars. 

Eva Mendes failed to meet one expectation in The Place Beyond the Pines 

Back when Ryan Gosling was already cast to play Luke Glanton in the 2012 movie The Place Beyond the Pines, the director of the film, Derek Cianfrance struggled miserably to find a love interest for Gosling’s character. But thankfully, the actor’s recommendation of Eva Mendes was struck by Cianfrance, who couldn’t believe he overlooked the phenomenal star. 

That’s when Derek Cianfrance called to meet Eva Mendes, who had to dress down considerably for the role of Romina. Surprisingly, this is where the actress struggled to convince the director. Considering how flawlessly gorgeous Mendes is, the actress failed to meet the expectations of looking unattractive and common for The Place Beyond the Pines. 

Eva Mendes in a still from The Place Beyond the Pines (2012) | image: Focus Features

Cianfrance told IndieWire, 

She came to an audition and she showed up with some high-waist, 1990’s jeans and a big, baggy T-shirt and her hair was a mess and she had on no make-up and she was trying her hardest to be unattractive and, of course, she was failing miserably at it, but it meant so much to me that she was making herself vulnerable. 

I told her she didn’t need to read, that I didn’t need her to read anything, and I asked her instead just would you take me for a drive and she took me around the neighborhood where she grew up. 

Eventually, Eva Mendes’ commitment to her role and her desperate desire to convince Derek Cianfrance with her no-makeup look was all the director ever needed to make up his mind. Further, a drive through Mendes’ neighborhood, where she grew up, served as a cherry on the cake for Cianfrance, who got convinced to cast Mendes alongside Ryan Gosling.

Derek Cianfrance’s million-dollar decision sparked Ryan Gosling’s romance 

Well, despite failing to meet the director’s crucial expectation of appearing unattractive and messy for the role of Romina, Eva Mendes became Derek Cianfrance’s bold casting decision for the 2012 crime thriller The Place Beyond the Pines. And that’s where it all began for the actress and Ryan Gosling, who transformed from being co-stars to friends to lovers. 

So it seems that while Ryan Gosling’s recommendation brought Eva Mendes close to the 2012 film, it was ultimately Derek Cianfrance’s million-dollar casting choice that brought the couple together and sparked real-life romance. To be fair, had Cianfrance not been convinced by Mendes’ toned-down look, it might have required Gosling to find another film to fulfill his fate. 

Gosling and Mendes in Derek Cianfrance’s The Place Beyond the Pines | image: Focus Features

Therefore, having met Eva Mendes in 2011, while filming The Place Beyond the Pines, Ryan Gosling started dating history co-star and even sparked PDA-packed headlines in October 2011. Thereafter, making several public appearances and starring in multiple projects, the duo welcomed their first daughter in 2014 and their second daughter in 2016 (via People). 

Recently, in 2022, Eva Mendes hinted at her marriage with Ryan Gosling through an Instagram post and later referred to him as her “husband” during her appearance on Channel Nine’s Today (via DailyMail). 

The Place Beyond the Pines is currently available to watch on Prime Video. 

Written by Krittika Mukherjee

Articles Published: 2337

Krittika is a News Writer at FandomWire with 2 years of prior experience in lifestyle and web content writing. With her previous works available on HubPages and Medium, she has woven over 2000 stories with us, about fan-favorite actors, movies, and shows. Post-graduate in Journalism and Honors-graduate in English Literature, when this art enthusiast isn't crafting your next favorite article, she finds her escapism in coffee, fiction, and the Wizarding World.