We’ve waited, dreamed, and prayed for this moment. Finally, the first true look at Greta Gerwig’s Barbie feature is here and gives a glorious introduction to the doll that changed the way little girls play forever.
In a play on Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, the teaser opens with a group of young girls living peacefully amongst their baby dolls. That is, until the monolithic Barbie comes down to Earth. With a smile and wink from Barbie (Margot Robbie), the girls turn on their now-outdated dolls, smashing them to bits.
The final few seconds of the teaser give a look at Barbie’s plastic and fantastic world, as well as the cast of characters we’ll see throughout the movie, played by Ryan Gosling, Issa Rae, Ncuti Gatwa, Kingsley Ben-Adir, and Simu Liu. From this bit alone, we see the unabashedly fun, glossy, and uber-pink world Gerwig brought to life for this film. In short, it looks really, really good. To think we ever doubted her!
Gerwig directed the film, based on the screenplay written by her and her partner Noah Baumbach. The film was stuck in development hell for eight years, changing stars and directors, before finally landing on the mumblecore filmmakers to lead the charge.
The teaser only offers a glimpse at the ensemble cast comprised of Will Ferrell, America Ferrera, Michael Cera, Kate McKinnon, Rhea Perlman, Emerald Fennell, Hari Nef, Sharon Rooney, Jamie Demetriou, Alexandra Shipp, Scott Evans, Emma Mackey, and Connor Swindells.
The teaser first showed in theaters yesterday ahead of James Cameron’s Avatar: The Way Of Water, giving folks two excellent reasons to rush to the theaters. Barbie arrives in theaters on July 21, 2023.