Jordan Karlesson
Six months ago, the first image of Ryan Gosling as Ken in next year’s Barbie movie, with Margot Robbie playing the titular character, sent fans into a tizzy.
Videos by Rare
With Warner Bros.’ Friday release of a teaser trailer for the movie — based on the toy doll, of course — the same crowd practically can’t contain itself. Not only with excitement, but with laughter too.
Within 11 hours of the movie studio posting the teaser on YouTube, it already had more than 2 million views.
Some moviegoers think making a movie about a plastic doll is a silly idea. But with esteemed director Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird, Little Women) behind the lens, Barbie has some serious potential. And it’s sure to get big numbers at the box office.
Warner Bros. still hasn’t announced the movie’s release date. But information accompanying the teaser says Barbie will hit theaters next summer. The teaser also mentions the movie won’t simultaneously premiere on streaming services.
Barbie Teaser Pokes Fun at a Sci-Fi Classic
The sneak peek, with “Also Sprach Zarathustra” as its music, is clearly a parody of Stanley Kubrick’s 1968 film, 2001: A Space Odyssey.
The Barbie teaser begins with a shot of a beautiful sunrise at the beach. A narrator — played, much to our surprise, Dame Helen Mirren — says: “Since the beginning of time, since the first little girl ever existed, there have been dolls.”
The teaser then depicts a group of girls sitting down and playing with makeshift dolls in the desert, presumably millions of years ago.
“But the dolls were always and forever, baby dolls,” the narrator continues. “Until …”
Attention turns to the back of someone staring at the sun. Seconds later, that someone is — of course — revealed to be Margot Robbie’s Barbie.
The small girls surround the giant-size Barbie, wearing a striped swimsuit, and stare at her with amazement. Robbie’s Barbie turns, lowers her sunglasses, and gives that alluring smile that only Robbie can give.
After she winks, the girls smash their dolls — just like the apes smash bones in 2001 — with one of them throwing a doll into the sky.
Check out the similarities for yourself:
Closing out the teaser are quick glimpses of the movie’s style and character. It shows Barbie looking over a city that is almost entirely pink. Then Ken, wearing a bandana and accompanied by what appear to be athletes. Then Issa Rae and Simu Liu, who are apparently going to play different versions of Barbie and Ken in the movie. And, finally, a dancing Barbie makes a clap to end the teaser.
It’s still unclear exactly how the plot of Barbie will play out. But we know from the trailer that it will involve a lot of pink.
