It's no secret that Barbie is one of the most anticipated movies of 2023 — and with less than a month until its release, we're finally starting to learn more about how this incredible film was put together.
Directed by Greta Gerwig, Barbie centres around, well, Barbie (Margot Robbie) and Ken (Ryan Gosling) who are living their best lives in Barbieland. After noticing that things aren't quite what they seem, Barbie and Ken decide to take a trip to the real world to find some answers.
Aside from Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, Barbie has a star-studded and diverse cast playing numerous other Barbies, Kens and humans — which, as a person of colour, I am very excited about.
Although diverse Barbie dolls didn't exist when I was growing up, it's so incredibly cool and important that young people today will get to see actors like Issa Rae, Ncuti Gatwa, Simu Liu, Ritu Arya and more represent these characters.
From now on, when we think of Barbie and Ken, people won't just conjure images of the stock-standard blonde hair, blue eyes and white skin. The release of Barbie will reshape cultural attitudes and prove that these iconic characters can exist across different races, shapes, sizes and more.
America Ferrera, who plays a Mattel employee in Barbie, expanded on the film's themes of representation and diversity in a press conference in Sydney, Australia.
America confided that she honestly didn't have a connection to Barbie dolls growing up — and that was most likely because she didn't feel seen in that world. But after reading the script for Greta's Barbie film, she felt so excited about to be part of a cultural moment that expands on such an iconic female character.
"I remember when I finished reading the script, I was so thrilled as just a woman of the world, that this movie was getting made — that THIS version of this movie was getting made, by these women, Greta and Margot."
"And as a mother, I was so thrilled that this movie was getting made because it's a different world for young women, boys and non-binary people growing up in this day and age. To be seen and feel like they can look up into the things that we value in our culture and that they're represented in it means everything to us."
"And as little girl America, finishing that script and trying to wrap my mind around the fact that someone had expanded the Barbie world where there was space for somebody like me…not because I had transformed into some unattainable expectation. but because our culture has shifted to make space for people like us is so beyond moving and inspiring to be part of."
"It feels important — there, I said it, this movie feels important to me on so many levels."
God, America is such a beautiful human being and she perfectly encapsulated the importance of Barbie.
