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‘Barbie’ Movie: Iconic Doll Has ‘Existential Crisis’ About Real World 

Margot Robbie attends the European premiere of "Barbie" in London, Britain July 12, 2023. (Reuters)
Margot Robbie attends the European premiere of "Barbie" in London, Britain July 12, 2023. (Reuters)
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‘Barbie’ Movie: Iconic Doll Has ‘Existential Crisis’ About Real World 

Margot Robbie attends the European premiere of "Barbie" in London, Britain July 12, 2023. (Reuters)
Margot Robbie attends the European premiere of "Barbie" in London, Britain July 12, 2023. (Reuters)

Margot Robbie recalls being at a rehearsal for the upcoming "Barbie" movie and experiencing an existential crisis.

Fortunately, lines from co-star America Ferrera's character were exactly what she needed to hear while both portraying the iconic doll and being a producer of a $145 million movie.

"She was like 'I release you from your assignment,'" Robbie said in an interview.

"I can't tell you how much weight lifted off my shoulders weirdly when she said that," Robbie added. "So I was like, ‘I've got to make this movie and it's the biggest movie I've ever produced, and I've got to answer to two humongous corporations and a director I really respect and actors.""

"Barbie" plunges into the pink world of the globally famous Mattel doll, spearheaded by Warner Bros and directed by Greta Gerwig, an Academy Award nominee for her direction of "Lady Bird" in 2017.

Similar to Robbie's existential crisis, the "Barbie" movie follows the doll who suddenly has an existential crisis in the middle of a dance number. That leads to a sequence of events that take her out of her perfect pink plastic world, forcing her into the real human world.

"Barbie" debuts on Friday and is expected to rake in more than $100 million in US theaters in its first weekend.

Even though the Barbie doll first debuted in 1959, it has taken more than 60 years for the character to get to the big screen.

Robbie, however, feels the film's message is an essential one for today's audience.

"I think we're putting a lot of expectations on ourselves to be everything and do everything and be perfect, like, this pursuit of perfection, which is impossible anyway," Robbie said.

Rather than seeking perfection, her hope is for the movie to be a gift for "anyone" that allows them to let go of their worries and "just enjoy."

For Canadian actor Ryan Gosling, who portrays the doll Ken, the film has something for everyone to appreciate.

"This movie is like an amusement park. It's like, there's a different ride for everyone, so everybody can have their own experience, and that's the beauty of it. It's kind of for everyone," he told Reuters during the "Barbie" world premiere in Los Angeles.

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Entertainment

Paramount's New Owners to Increase Film Production, Hang on to Cable Networks

FILE PHOTO: A Paramount logo is shown on the top of a building in Hollywood in Los Angeles, California, US, August 5, 2025. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A Paramount logo is shown on the top of a building in Hollywood in Los Angeles, California, US, August 5, 2025. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo
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Paramount's New Owners to Increase Film Production, Hang on to Cable Networks

FILE PHOTO: A Paramount logo is shown on the top of a building in Hollywood in Los Angeles, California, US, August 5, 2025. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A Paramount logo is shown on the top of a building in Hollywood in Los Angeles, California, US, August 5, 2025. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo

Paramount Global unveiled plans on Wednesday to retain and develop its stalwart entertainment brands Nickelodeon, MTV, and BET, while sharply increasing feature film production following its $8.4 billion merger with Skydance Media.

"We're thinking about ... the cable networks, not as declining linear assets that we need to spin off or deal with somehow," said President Jeff Shell. "We're thinking of those brands that we have to redefine."

Shell joined Chairman and CEO David Ellison and the rest of the executive team at a media gathering on Wednesday on the Paramount Pictures lot, where they discussed strategy for their film, television, and streaming businesses - as well as emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence.

The press event was held a week after Paramount completed its merger with Skydance Media, installing new leadership at the media company, Reuters reported.

Television Media Chair George Cheeks acknowledged the decline of cable television - "there's no question it's a super challenging business" - but added that the company's cable networks have created iconic franchises that may well thrive in the world of streaming video.

Shell singled out BET, a network focused on Black culture that Paramount previously explored selling, as an important building block of the company's streaming strategy.

Paramount's plans to develop its legacy cable networks come at a time when other media companies are shedding fading cable networks. Warner Bros Discovery and Comcast have announced plans to separate their cable businesses from their studios and streaming operations.

Josh Greenstein, co-chair of Paramount Pictures, said the studio plans to raise annual output, from eight this year to 15 movies "very quickly," with the ultimate goal of releasing 20 films a year.

The coming slate will include new installments of familiar franchises, such as "Star Trek" or "Transformers," as well as original movies, like the newly acquired James Mangold film project, "High Side," starring Timothée Chalamet.

The studio also will seek out family fare, in the vein of "A Night at the Museum" or "The Goonies."

"We love these movies. We all grew up on these movies, and we don't feel like many people are making them," said Dana Goldberg, co-chair of Paramount Pictures.

Ellison said his goal is to transform Paramount into a haven for the most talented filmmakers and sees emerging technologies like artificial intelligence providing a tool to enhance storytelling.

"I also think we have to acknowledge that this is a technology that is evolving, I think, faster than everyone in Hollywood really thinks it is," said Ellison, who is the son of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison. "When you start putting that in a filmmaker's hands, I think you're seeing another moment that'll be as transformative as when John Lasseter and Steve Jobs built Pixar."