Simu Liu is breaking his silence after an awkward clip of him and his Barbie co-star Ryan Gosling went viral.

In a video taken at the film’s London premiere this month, Ryan was seen brushing off Liu’s hand after he’d placed it around his waist as they posed for photos.

Taking to Instagram Wednesday, Liu, 34, suggested that Ryan had shooed him away in jest and praised the Canadian actor for making the press tour a blast for the cast.

He kicked off the post by making a reference to the film’s hilarious ‘Beach You Off’ scene where Ken (Gosling) and Tourist Ken (Liu) face-off in the sand.

‘I’d beach off with this Kenadian again in a heartbeat,’ wrote Liu, who is a fellow Canadian.

He continued: ‘[Gosling] is the best human in every way, especially when he jokes around with us on the carpet and on set, infecting all of us with his kenergy.’

To close out the post, Liu redirected focus to the ongoing SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes that have shutdown Hollywood.

‘Now let’s get back to the issues that matter, like supporting our striking actors and writers fighting for fair wages!’

Liu included a photo from the London premiere that showed Ryan smiling at him as they posed with their hands in their pockets.

His depiction of Gosling as a jokester provides clarity to the viral clip that drew discussion online earlier this week, with one person saying they would ‘literally never show my face again’ if they had been Simu.

Taking to Twitter, another user said: ‘This Ken doesn’t like to be touched across the nape of his back. Simu Liu handled it well though.’

Another wrote: ‘I mean you supposed to ask before you touch someone,’ while a third added: ‘He was so mad after like you can see it in his face.’

A fourth person came to Simu’s defense and wrote: ‘Is it me or has Ryan Gosling come off very arrogant for this entire press tour?’ 

Ryan stars as the main Ken in the fantasy film opposite Margot Robbie who portrays the main Barbie.

Simu plays Tourist Ken in the flick alongside John Cena, Scott Evans and Kingsley Ben-Adir who play other versions of the hunky character. 

Barbie could join an elite club of billion dollar movies with industry insiders predicting the acclaimed live-action film could cross the milestone after a $360million opening weekend.

Barbie beat its initial estimate of $155million with its domestic total rising to $162million following its release on July 21 – with its ticket sales marking the biggest opening weekend of the year, beating The Super Mario Bros. Movie which pulled in $146 million.

The film has also taken in $194.3million worldwide – making its current worldwide total $356.3million.

Deadline’s industry insiders are predicting Barbie may cross the billion dollar mark globally – with the Margot Robbie starring movie tipped to make at least $800million during its theatrical run.

The movie has received praise for its cast, storyline and its feminist themes, with a source telling the publication: ‘If you made Barbie in the 1980s, it would have fallen into the patriarchy.

Barbie is the second biggest opening of all time. Only Avengers: Endgame in 2019 did better with $357 million. 

Barbie is also the biggest debut ever for a film directed by a woman (Greta Gerwig), overtaking Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck’s 2019 blockbuster Captain Marvel ($153 million), reports Variety. 

The highest grossing film of all time is 2009’s Avatar – which made $2,923,706,026, closely followed by 2019’s Avengers: Endgame with $2,797,501,328.

The Barbenheimer box office battle saw Oppenheimer rake in  $82.4 million domestically – and has added $98 million for a total of $180 million worldwide.

Warner Bros. president of domestic distribution Jeff Goldstein said: ‘This historic result reflects the intense heat, interest and enthusiasm for Barbie. This doll will indeed have long long legs.’

In total, Barbie and Oppenheimer drew an estimated $465 million in ticket sales following their joint release date of July 21. 

If the $465 million figure is accurate, Barbenheimer weekend becomes the biggest box office weekend of all time. 

The small matter of saving the world from potential annihilation appeared to be taking its toll on Wednesday as Tom Cruise promoted his latest blockbuster in South Korea. 

The Hollywood legend is currently working his way through a promotional tour on behalf of Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One – the seventh instalment in the long-running film franchise. 

But he looked ready to hang up the bullet proof vest and retire to bed during a press conference in Seoul, where he was joined by co-stars Hayley Atwell, Simon Pegg, Vanessa Kirby and Pom Klementieff. 

The cast were accompanied by director James McQuarrie as they fielded questions about the forthcoming film, shot on location across England and mainland Europe at the height of the coronavirus pandemic.  

Cruise has used his considerable platform to urge people to head to the cinema this summer to catch films like Barbie, Oppenheimer and his latest Mission: Impossible offering. 

The actor took to Instagram to encourage people to see movies on the big screen despite the glorious weather, amid a challenging time for cinemas.

As well as paying tribute to Indiana Jones legend Harrison Ford as the fifth film hit screens, Cruise said he’s looking forward to Greta Gerwig’s Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling-starring live-action Barbie film and Christopher Nolan’s biographical thriller.

He wrote: This summer is full of amazing movies to see in theaters. These are just a few that we can’t wait to see on the big screen.

‘Congratulations, Harrison Ford, on 40 years of Indiana Jones and creating one of the most iconic characters in cinema history. You have given us countless hours of joy.

‘I love a double feature, and it doesn’t get more explosive (or more pink) than one with Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer and Greta Gerwig’s Barbie.’ 

The Hollywood star was seen in one picture in the post holding his Cineworld cinema ticket.

The cinema chain was hit particularly hard amid the COVID-19 pandemic and was facing closure, but it has been saved from bankruptcy.

Meanwhile, Cruise recently hailed Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One is the perfect entry point into the franchise for newcomers.

The actor starred in the first ‘Mission: Impossible’ movie in 1996, and Tom believes the new film could help to attract new, younger viewers to the franchise.

He told Collider: ‘They could start with this film to see and understand that this is all real, all the action is real, it’s practical. This movie is an epic adventure. It’s so lush, filled with practical action and amazing locations.”

Cruise believes the new film has a “very engrossing story”.

The veteran actor also hailed the movie’s star-studded cast, which includes Hayley Atwell, Rebecca Ferguson and Simon Pegg.

He said: ‘[The movie has] submarines, it has the desert, it has Rome, beautiful locations in Abu Dhabi, Norway, a train that we built, action on the train, and a very engrossing story with a really beautiful cast, an amazing, very charismatic cast.

‘I think when you look at this movie, it really defines what I think about cinema and why because you look at this kind of cast, you look at a brilliant ensemble cast, and the kind of story is very engrossing.’ 

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