Ryan Gosling Gives Rare Shout-out to Eva Mendes & Their Daughters on ‘SNL’

Ryan Gosling‘s recent Saturday Night Live hosting gig was full of laughs, but the end of the night was all love! The 43-year-old actor closed out the evening with a sweet shout-out to Eva Mendes and their daughters, Esmeralda and Amada. After thanking the cast, crew and Emily Blunt for joining him for the April 13 episode, Ryan shouted,  “Eva, [Esmeralda], [Amada], I love you!”

During one of the skits that night, Eva’s name was also mentioned. While the Barbie star imitated a Cuban accent with Marcello Hernandez and Kenan Thompson, Marcello’s character teased that “a lot of celebrities” were going to be at a club, including Eva, which Ryan reacted with a surprised facial expression. Not only that, but Ryan’s character even joked that a “Cuban wife” can change a man.

‘Eva, Ezzy, Ama I love you 💕’

_ Ryan Gosling family shoutout on SNL pic.twitter.com/qG2OO21sEb

— 𝗥𝘆𝗮𝗻 𝗚𝗼𝘀𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗗𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗣𝗮𝗴𝗲 ❀ ๑ೃ (@ryangoslingpics) April 14, 2024

Although Eva, 50, was born in Miami, she was raised by Cuban parents. The actress poked fun at Ryan’s hilarious skit by sharing a video to Instagram on Monday, April 15, that was captioned, “Oye! Back in L.A. with my ‘Cuban Papi.’”

Ryan tends to keep his and Eva’s relationship out of his public comments and appearances. The couple have not attended a red carpet premiere together since they filmed their 2012 movie, The Place Beyond the Pines. They met on the set of the film in 2011.

Nevertheless, Eva hasn’t hesitated to share sweet shout-outs and comments about Ryan on her Instagram account. She also recalled how they met and Ryan’s dedication to his craft during an interview with TODAY last month.

“I have never experienced anything like that. The way he works, his commitment to his craft, how he wants to make everything as best as it could be, and that means making his co-stars as best as they could be,” Eva noted.

The mom of two then pointed out that she chose to stop auditioning for new film roles after becoming a mother to her and Ryan’s daughters — a decision that was a “no brainer” for her.

“But unfortunately, or fortunately, there is only one Ryan. So, I pretty much stopped just acting after that,” she said. “It was almost just like a non-verbal agreement that it was like, ‘OK, he’s going to work, and I’m going to work. I’m just going to work here.’ He went and he did his job. He just happens to be really good at his job. And he did it, and he came home.”