Here is a prank that even Jimmy Kimmel could not have cooked up. A chef from Munich passed himself off as Ryan Gosling and walked onto the stage at the Goldene Kamera Awards in Berlin on Thursday to accept an award for La La Land. The incident nearly beats the mix-up at the Oscars on February 26, when the best film award was mistakenly handed over to the La La Land team instead of the actual winner, Moonlight.
The impostor, who bears a resemblance to the Hollywood star, is a cook from Munich named Ludwig Lehner. He had been planted at the ceremony by German comedians Joko Winterscheidt and Klaas Heufer-Umlauf. The scam was elaborate: the professional pranksters set up a fake celebrity management agency and convinced the organisers that they could get Gosling to attend the ceremony provided he was was given an award.
The organisers complied. The evening’s host, Steven Gaetjen, was thrilled to bits when he announced that “one of the hottest stars in Hollywood... the one and only, Ryan Gosling” was coming onto the stage.
Lehner played his part well, making a grand entry and thanking the audience, which included Hollywood stars Nicole Kidman, Colin Farrell and Jane Fonda, in a German accent: “Good evening, I am Ryan Gosling. I dedicate this award to Joko and Klass, thank you very much.”
The Goldene Kamera co-ordinators later apologised for falling for the prank. The award for La La Land stays; security arrangements have since been tightened.
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