Sexiest Man Alive Backlash: Ryan Gosling Fans Protest

Wonderwall, Thursday, November 17, 2011, 1:21pm (PST)

By Chris Gardner

• Hell hath no fury like a Ryan Gosling fan scorned.

  Thousands of supporters of the "Drive" star have taken to the Internet -- and the streets -- to ferociously, and often comically, protest People magazine's selection of Bradley Cooper as its Sexiest Man Alive for 2011.

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  People unveiled its pick on Wednesday, and almost immediately, legions of Gosling supporters expressed their outrage over him "losing" the title to the "Hangover" star. It simply wasn't good enough that Gosling still managed to make the mag's cover and be included as an "honoree." Instead, Gosling devotees are protesting and petitioning for him to receive his own People cover and snag the sexy back from Cooper.

  It's one of the first times the annual unveiling has drawn such an intensely negative reaction. The story has gotten big enough that the magazine itself covered the protest on its website, calling the anti-Cooper, pro-Gosling movement "unexpected."

  Gosling groupies launched their protests on message boards and comment sections before moving their frustrations to Facebook. There, fans organized a Thursday afternoon protest in front of People magazine's offices at the Time-Life Building at 1271 Avenue of the Americas in Manhattan, N.Y. Photos posted on the protest's event page showed several dozen participants (both men and women) waving signs and cardboard cut-outs of Gosling's face.

  Supporters of the sexy that is Sir Gosling are citing his breakout year in 2011, which saw him star in three high-profile movies: "Drive," "The Ides of March" and "Crazy, Stupid, Love." The latter particularly turned heads and raised temperatures, thanks to Gosling's impressive shirtless scene featuring a tanned and chiseled torso. The Canadian-born heartthrob has also garnered impressive traction for his lovable charms, like rescuing dogs and donning GQ-worthy red carpet fashion.

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  Meanwhile back on the Internet, more than 2,000 signatures have been compiled on a petition via Change.org to get Gosling that cover. Simply providing their John Hancock isn't enough, though, and fans are making sure their opinions are voiced on the site as well. June Chaiyasit posted, "This is a TRAVESTY. I fear for the sanity of the world when a magazine as reputable as People could be blind to the obvious superiority of Ryan's sexiness. This is far more concerning than any other human injustice I've seen thus far."

• Christine Hnath continued, "Clearly the honor goes to Mr. Gosling, hands down. HANDS. DOWN. I mean, did they even see 'Drive'? Or 'Crazy, Stupid, Love'? The man makes any woman with a working set of ovaries weak in the knees."

  And apparently men, too. Gosling supporters of the same-sex variety are also standing up to show their frustration. One Facebook user posted a photo of Cooper's People cover crossed out in blue ink with a note on the side that says, "Not My People."

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  Supporters of the movement have even piggybacked their anger with Occupy Wall Street. Borrowing the movement's slogan, they posted a Gosling pictorial on Facebook that is emblazoned with the now-familiar saying "We Are the 99%." The same artwork includes this decree: "We believe People Magazine made a huge mistake by choosing Bradley Cooper as the 2011 Sexiest Man Alive. 2011 was clearly The Year of Gosling, and we demand that People Magazine give Ryan his own magazine cover. Together, we can right this wrong."

  Not so fast.

  People's executive editor Liz Sporkin said the magazine is faithfully standing by their man.

  "Bradley Cooper is the whole package. He's gorgeous, talented, brainy, loves his mom, can cook up a storm and speak fluent French!" Sporkin said in a story posted on the mag's site late Thursday afternoon. "Who can argue with that?"

  No word from yet from Cooper or Gosling.

  But someone who is speaking out about the sexy scandal is George Clooney. Asked about Gosling's alleged snub, Clooney confessed that his "The Ides of March" co-star "really wants it." And perhaps more shocking than Clooney's claim is that Gosling gained some valuable coaching on his quest to be crowned the sexiest guy alive.

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  "He's been saying... the whole time we were on the set of 'Ides,' he was like, 'How did you pull that [winning Sexiest Man Alive] off?'" Clooney told Extra. "So I called up Brad Pitt and we worked with him for weeks on the walk. ... We told him how to train ... everything."

  Apparently Clooney and Pitt's teaching skills were a little rusty, even though both won the title twice: Clooney in 1996 and 2007, Pitt in 1995 and 2000.

  Well, there's always next year.

• Until then, we can offer Gosling fanatics this Eye Candy photo gallery. Enjoy.