It looks like the movie about America’s most famous doll is starting to move forward. Variety reports that Warner Bros. has reached a deal with the toy company Mattel to bring Barbie to the big screen. Oscar-winner Margot Robbie will be taking on the eponymous character, whose real name is Barbara Millicent Roberts, as well as co-producing the film.
“Playing with Barbie promotes confidence, curiosity and communication throughout a child’s journey to self-discovery,” Robbie said in a statement. “Over the brand’s almost 60 years, Barbie has empowered kids to imagine themselves in aspirational roles from a princess to president. I’m so honored to take on this role and produce a film that I believe will have a tremendously positive impact on children and audiences worldwide. I can’t imagine better partners than Warner Bros and Mattel to bring this film to the big screen.“
The feature will also mark the first project from the newly-established Mattel Films, which is headed by producer Robbie Brenner.
Barbie was originally being developed at Sony for the last few years, with Amy Schumer and then Anne Hathaway both initially in talks to star in the movie. In January it was announced that the movie had been pushed back to a May 8, 2020 release date. Robbie — who has a busy slate including Dreamland, The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Birds of Prey, and Ruin — will now take over the role from Hathaway.
There was a previous iteration of the Barbie movie that included a screenplay from Hilary Winston (The LEGO Ninjago Movie, the Bad Teacher TV series) with Amy Schumer and her sister Kim Caramele having done a rewrite. Oscar winner Diablo Cody was also working on the screenplay at the studio back in 2015.
In the meantime, Robbie’s scheduled to reprise her role of Harley Quinn next month for DC’s latest big-screen adaptation, Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn).
(PHOTO BY DAVE J. HOGAN GETTY IMAGES)
