How La La Land’s 10th Anniversary Poster Fixes Ryan Gosling’s Biggest Regret About the Movie

10. While it’s hard to imagine any but Gosling playing Noah Calhoun in 2004’s The Notebook, director Nick Cassevetes admitted to Vh1 he had to fight to cast the then-23-year-old actor.

“When I told [New Line Cinema] I wanted to hire Ryan for the lead, they kind of looked at me like I was out of my mind,” Cassavetes revealed to VH1. Gosling was a little surprised, too, especially after his first meeting with the director.

11. Before Rachel McAdams landed the role of Allie, one of Gosling’s former co-stars was actually considered for the part: Britney Spears, his Mickey Mouse Club pal and, you know, one of the biggest stars in the world.

In an interview with ET, Gosling revealed he had screen-tested with Spears, saying, “I did…I hadn’t seen her really since she was about 12—we were both 12—so she’s grown up, but she was really good, actually. She did a really nice job. We were 12, I don’t remember much from when I was 12, but yeah, no, she did an excellent job, actually. That was cool.”