When you manifest your childhood crush straight into your soulmate.

Eva Mendes and Ryan Gosling are undoubtedly one of Hollywood’s most adorable couples. The pair first caught a liking to each other when they met on the set of the 2012 film, The Place Beyond the Pines. What began was a romance that would last a lifetime. It has been over a decade and the relationship is still going strong.

Ryan Gosling and Eva Mendes in The Place Beyond the Pines (2012) | Sidney Kimmel Entertainment

Before getting into the glitz and glamour of Tinsel Town, Ryan Gosling was left enamored by the beauty of an extremely talented actress who is unfortunately, no longer with us – Raquel Welch. The actor has spoken multiple times about the crush he had on her while growing up and now, neither we nor the fans can help but notice the striking resemblance between Raquel Welch and Ryan Gosling’s wife, Eva Mendes.

Ryan Gosling Was Head Over Heels for Raquel Welch

Raquel Welch in The Muppet Show (1978) | ATV

Ryan Gosling loves Eva Mendes dearly and there is no doubt there. After all, the man has plans to spend the rest of his life running things by his wife first. If that’s not true love, we don’t know what is.

However, before Mendes entered his life, there was another actress who had kept little Gosling’s heart occupied – Raquel Welch. During his appearance on The Ellen Show, the Barbie actor was part of a segment where he was supposed to answer questions thrown at him by host Ellen DeGeneres. For every question answered, a thousand dollars would be donated to charity.

When DeGeneres asked him to name a celebrity he had a crush on growing up, Gosling answered without missing a beat, “Raquel Welch.”

He also answered a similar question posed in an interview with W Magazine stating,

I saw Raquel Welch on The Muppet Show when I was young. She was dressed like a cavewoman. She was dancing with a big puppet spider, and I liked it. I liked it more than anything I’d ever liked before.

Welch was a part of many projects throughout her career including Bewitched, Bedazzled, Legally Blonde, The Three Musketeers, and more. She passed away a little over a year ago on February 15, 2023, at the age of 82, and left behind a legacy of strong female characters that changed how the audience views women on screen.

It Looks Like Ryan Gosling Had a Type All Along

If you take a look at Mendes and Welch side-by-side, you might find yourself confused for a moment about who’s who. The two actresses look so alike each other that we can’t help but wonder if Gosling has had a type all along.

When Mendes appeared for an interview with Today a few months ago, fans were taken aback by the Ghost Rider actress’ new look. In the comment section of the interview on YouTube, fans had a lot to say about her look with one stating, “This is crazy. She’s always been so naturally beautiful. Stunning. Why did she change her face?” and another saying, “This is not aging it is too much work that she didn’t need. She would have looked great had she aged naturally.”

On a clip of the interview posted to TikTok, many fans pointed out her resemblance with Welch with one writing, “Ryans celebrity crush when he was younger was Raquel Welch she looks just like her now!”

And this is not the opinion of one or two fans but many. Have a look:

It looks like Gosling has been manifesting Mendes all his life. The couple has two daughters together – Esmeralda and Amada Lee.

You can rent/buy The Place Beyond the Pines from Prime Video.