In the span of five years, Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone have starred opposite one another in three movies, each playing a crucial role in the duo’s unofficial love trilogy. Although their entry into Hollywood differs slightly —Gosling starting his career with dramatic roles and Stone beginning hers in comedy films—both actors are now celebrated for their range as performers, as evident in their collaborative projects alone. Throughout the years, Gosling and Stone have gradually cemented their place among Hollywood’s beloved acting duos, despite starring in only three films together: Crazy, Stupid, Love, Gangster Squad, and La La Land.

Since their first movie together, Crazy, Stupid, Love, the undeniable chemistry and well-matched performances of Gosling and Stone have gained far greater attention from both audiences and critics. The collaborative efforts of Gosling and Stone culminated in Academy Award nominations for Best Actor and Actress, respectively, with Stone taking home the statuette. Though each of Gosling and Stone’s movies differs in tone, they feature the pair in a captivating on-screen romance that elicits both laughter and tears from audiences.

The Unofficial Ryan Gosling & Emma Stone Love Trilogy Explained

Gosling And Stone Gradually Fall In Love Throughout Their Collaborative Movies

Gosling and Stone first found themselves on-screen together in the romantic comedy Crazy, Stupid, Love. The movie follows various love stories that are connected to and centered around Steve Carell’s protagonist, Cal Weaver. Gosling’s habitual playboy Jacob offers his help to Cal in his romantic endeavors, while simultaneously starting his own relationship with the more down-to-earth Hannah, played by Stone. The opposing personalities of Gosling and Stone’s characters are deftly captured in the actors’ committed performances, with Hannah successfully altering Jacob’s perspective on love by the end of the movie.

Amid Crazy, Stupid, Love‘s ensemble cast, Gosling and Stone stand out, and their on-screen relationship holds just as much weight narratively as Cal’s divorce. Contributing to a satisfying string of connected love stories and a hilarious plot twist, Gosling and Stone’s love story in Crazy, Stupid, Love is a great start to their fictional romance.

In Gangster Squad, Gosling and Stone’s love story is much darker. The crime thriller is significantly less romantic than the other films in the actors’ love trilogy, but still sees the two in an alluring relationship that shines bright among the film’s otherwise lackluster elements. The romance between Gosling’s Jerry Wooters and Stone’s Grace Faraday is set against a backdrop of crime and undercover operations. Falling in love amidst a dangerous takedown operation, there’s enough tension surrounding Jerry and Grace’s relationship to get audiences invested, even if the characters themselves are mostly shallow.

Gosling and Stone’s final film in their romantic trilogy is Damien Chazelle’s La La Land, where the two play struggling artists in Los Angeles hoping to pursue their dreams as a musician and actress, respectively. La La Land has received the highest critical praise of Gosling and Stone’s collaborative movies, and it’s easy to see why. Aside from the film’s rich visuals, compelling screenplay, and energetic musical numbers, La La Land works largely thanks to Gosling and Stone’s palpable chemistry and career-best performances.

The Surprising Ending To Ryan Gosling & Emma Stone’s Movie Trilogy

The Most Romantic Gosling And Stone Film Has The Least Traditional Ending

Despite being the most straightforward romance film of Gosling and Stone’s love trilogy, La La Land doesn’t have the same traditional happy ending as Crazy, Stupid, Love or Gangster Squad. Though their relationships in the previous films go through obstacles, both couples end up together in the end. However, La La Land‘s ending is drastically different. The entirety of the film sees Sebastian and Mia being met with opportunities and setbacks in their respective careers before realizing that they must sacrifice a relationship with one another to pursue their pᴀssions.

Sebastian and Mia’s split is natural and realistic, easing audiences into the film’s heartbreaking conclusion. La La Land‘s emotional storytelling results in a surprising ending that subverts the audience’s expectations, especially those familiar with Gosling and Stone’s previous on-screen relationships that saw the pair work things out in the end. Whether La La Land‘s ending is happy or sad varies on the individual, but it supports the movie’s core themes well and is highly affecting regardless, thanks to Gosling and Stone’s performances.

Gosling & Stone’s Chemistry Makes All 3 Movies Better

The Actors’ Pairing Is A Highlight Of Each Movie

Crazy, Stupid, Love and La La Land have been met with considerably more praise from critics and audiences than Gangster Squad, and while the latter is by far the weakest entry in the actors’ trilogy, it isn’t on account of Gosling and Stone’s performances. Within several of Gangster Squad‘s negative reviews, the pairing of Gosling and Stone is noted as being a positive aspect of the film. The actors do a lot with the little their characters are given, particularly Stone, and present a convincing romantic connection between Jerry and Grace.

While the quality of La La Land and Crazy, Stupid, Love isn’t as heavily dependent on Gosling and Stone’s chemistry, both movies greatly benefit from their partnership. Each movie has a well-written and clever exploration of romance, balanced with comedy and drama, and Gosling and Stone’s performances make it difficult to imagine any other acting duo in place of them. The combined talent and shared chemistry between Gosling and Stone have made their unofficial love trilogy exciting for audiences to watch over the years, and should the two share the screen again sometime in the future, there’s no doubt it’ll be just as enjoyable.