Why is Barbie reluctant to get a sequel?

Margot Robbie is not only the protagonist of Barbie, but is also one of its producers. Thanks to LuckyChap Entertainment, his film and television company, the performer was one of the main promoters of the feature film . In fact, he personally took on the task of summoning Greta Gerwig and pitching her concept for the project to Warner Bros.

At the meeting where they got approval, he explained the instances in which the various Hollywood studios proved “brave enough to unite a great idea with a visionary director” and launched an ambitious screening. “I think I told you (the movie) would make a billion dollars, so maybe I was overselling it,” he told Collider days before the premiere.

But the actress did not exaggerate: this mark is the one that the film has just exceeded at the world box office. Less than three weeks after its release, the film broke a barrier that no female-directed solo feature film had. Additionally, it became the sixth title to surpass that figure during the pandemic, joining Spider-Man: No Coming Home (2021), Top Gun: Maverick (2022), Jurassic World: Dominion (2022), Avatar: the path of water (2022) and Super Mario Bros: The Movie (2023).

Animation based on Nintendo’s video game has taken the big screen by storm and if the announcement of a sequel has been delayed, it’s mainly because of the writers’ strike. The situation of Barbie has other factors at play and is more uncertain despite the huge success it achieved in its first few weeks on the Billboard.

Contrary to what the machinery of superhero movies and the rest of the big franchises in the industry dictates, neither Gerwig nor Robbie have signed contracts obliging them to shoot a second installment. This was revealed by The Hollywood Reporter, who detailed that in the months leading up to the premiere, there had been approaches to seal the director’s continuity, but that his team had postponed any negotiations until after the theatrical debut. . Ryan Gosling, who plays Ken and is reluctant to get involved in blockbusters, doesn’t have to come back either.

Any studio interested in bringing them back will have to take into account the huge profits generated by the original film, a comedy whose budget would have been $140 million .

This point should be solved without major problems. The most complex thing will be to convince the filmmaker to lady bird (2017), which has so far been extremely honest about its lack of interest in bringing a sequel to life. And that, according to reports, he must first make two deliveries of The world of Narnia for netflix.

“Right now, it is all I have “, he told the New York Times. “I feel like this at the end of every movie, like I’ll never have a new idea again and everything I’ve ever wanted to do, I’ve done it before. I wouldn’t want to crush anyone’s dream , but me, at the moment, I am in nothing.

This perspective contrasts with the multiple initiatives designed by Mattel, the owner of the brand. Barbiewho wants Gerwig’s film to be the start of a series of productions based on his various toys.

Ynon Kreiz, CEO of the company, assured that in the beginning the focus was on doing the first one well and waiting carefully to see if it became a phenomenon. “If you do that, the opportunities open up very quickly, once you’ve established the first film as a successful representation of a franchise on the big screen,” he told Variety. “Our ambition is to create film franchises “, he underlined.

These projects include a film based on Barney, which will be produced by Daniel Kaluuya and which the exec compared to Do you want to be John Malkovich? (1999) and The Orchid Thief (2002). “I don’t know if it will necessarily be darker. it’s just gonna be unique ”.

They also advance on a tape of Polly Pocket, the doll introduced to the market in the late 80s. The feature has Lily Collins as the protagonist and Lena Dunham as director and screenwriter. In addition, they are working on another on Hot Wheels which will have JJ Abrams as a producer, and on a film on Thomas and his friends with Marc Foster (World War Z) as a director. In total, there are more than a dozen Mattel titles that could hit the big screen soon. Barbie That should make it easier, but it’s also a problem: he set the bar too high.