RYAN GOSLING
It probably won’t come as a surprise that the star of The Notebook, Crazy, Stupid, Love., and La La Land, among other indie darlings and box office hits, is also a proud feminist. The meme “Feminist Ryan Gosling” that features pictures of the actor accompanied by references to feminist theory became a global phenomenon in 2011. Not only is this meme hilarious (who doesn’t love thoughtful, sensitive, feminist studs?) but studies have shown that it may also help improve men’s perceptions towards the feminist movement.
Better yet, this internet trend isn’t just a cute way to spread feminist messages; Gosling is one of the first celebrity hunks to publicly support women’s liberation. In one interview, Gosling stated, “I’m attracted to films that have strong female characters because there are strong female characters in my life,” and went on to discuss how he has adopted his mother’s fierce feminism into his own life.
CHRIS HEMSWORTH
Speaking of badass moms, according to actor Chris Hemsworth, “My mum’s a big feminist. I think that my views on things, as far as respect for women and so on, came from my mum. My dad has a very balanced and respectful view on a lot of things too. They were huge positive influences in my life.”
Hemsworth, the muscular star of Marvel’s Thor franchise, has also made headlines after his public support of the Time’s Up movement against sexual harassment in 2018. Hemsworth stated, “Enough harassment; enough with sexual abuse; enough with all the garbage that women have had to deal with since the beginning of civilization.” Smart and handsome!
HARRY STYLES
This singer-songwriter mesmerized fans of the boyband One Direction with his boyish good looks and angelic voice. The band is now broken up, but Styles has taken the opportunity to cement himself as a modern day rock star.
He’s a known supporter of the movement to end gun violence, Black Lives Matter, and LGBTQ+ rights, and has recently officially came out as a feminist. Styles stated, “I think ultimately feminism is thinking that men and women should be equal… That doesn’t feel like a crazy thing to me.
However, like any good feminist ally, Styles doesn’t want to steal the spotlight. He says, “I don’t want a lot of credit for being a feminist. It’s pretty simple. I think the ideals of feminism are pretty straightforward.”
MARK RUFFALO
Actor and producer Mark Ruffalo stole the hearts of teen girls across the world when he starred as Jennifer Garner’s love interest in the iconic 2004 rom-com 13 Going on 30. Since then, Ruffalo’s work has earned both critical acclaim and box office success. This is mostly due to his talent as an actor, but I suspect it might also be because of those eyes!
Luckily, every millenial’s childhood celebrity crush is also an active feminist. In one interview for Avengers: Age Of Ultron, Ruffalo and co-star Scarlett Johansson swapped interview questions to highlight the sexism actresses face during interviews.
That’s just one instance of Ruffalo’s activism. The actor is also a well-known supporter of women’s reproductive rights, and frequently publisizes his feminist beliefs on social media. Check out this tweet in which the cutie, “Waves goodbye to patriarchy!”
TREVOR NOAH
You probably know this hottie from The Daily Show, or maybe from his New York Times best selling book. Like many other men, the stigma surrounding the word “feminist” kept Noah from identifying as one for much of his life. “Most of my teachers were female in school. I grew up in a world where authority was female,” Noah said, “[But] I never thought to call myself a feminist because of branding. I had this skewed idea of feminist: I thought it meant being a woman who hates men.”
However, after this thought-provoking interview with globally acclaimed African writer and feminist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Noah had a change of heart. “I was like, ‘Oh, this is what my mom taught me. This is simple. I don’t understand why everybody is not this.’” Since then, Noah has been an avid supporter of women’s rights, helping men across the country realize what feminism really is!
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