‘Barbie’ Co-Writer Noah Baumbach Skips World Premiere over WGA Strike; Greta Gerwig Says ‘Nothing in Hollywood Happens Without Writers’
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In a display of pink visible from outer space, Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” held its lush world premiere on Sunday in Los Angeles.
The Shrine Auditorum, located smack in the middle of the USC campus, was hosed down in colors of blush and bashful for the anticipated Warner Bros. release (as in, the security guards wore pink polo shirts), which drew the film’s stars Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling.
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One notable absence was Noah Baumbach, the film’s co-writer and Gerwig’s partner.
“My co-writer and co-creator, my partner in love and art, Noah Baumbach is not here. He is passionately supporting the fight of the Writers Guild of America,” Gerwig said. “He is a Barbie girl. Nothing in ‘Barbie’ happened without him, and nothing in Hollywood happens without writers.”
The Shrine, once the site of the annual Academy Awards, was packed with Gerwig’s cast of dolls, humans and other brand enthusiasts like “RuPaul’s Drag Race” winner Trixie Mattel and, in a show-stopping surprise red carpet appearance, rapper Nicki Minaj, who appears on the “Barbie” soundtrack. Even the free popcorn got a cotton candy makeover. Cast members Dua Lipa, America Ferrera, Issa Rae, Hari Nef, Simu Liu, and Michael Cera turned up for festivities.
Other show business power players in attendance were CAA’s Bryan Lourd, prolific creator J.J. Abrams, Amazon Studios head of film, streaming and theatrical Courtenay Valenti, producer Lawrence Bender and Focus Features distribution head Lisa Bunnell. Team Warner Bros. was naturally represented by its beaming film chiefs Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy, in addition to their head of theatrical distribution Jeff Goldstein.
Excitement was palpable in the auditorium on Sunday, perhaps thanks to the collective relief felt by filmmakers, cast and Warner Bros. brass. The premiere date was in the crosshairs of the looming Screen Actors Guild strike. Had SAG leadership not extended their contractual talks deadline with the Hollywood producers until July 12, tonight’s pink carpet would still be bound in plastic and sweating in the back of a Teamsters truck.
Buzz around the film has been deafening, thanks to one of the most robust marketing campaigns Hollywood has seen in recent memory. The doll’s signature pink palette has been visible in tie-ins like an HGTV reality competition series, consumer products like special editions of gaming console X-Box, retail collaborations with Bloomingdale’s and Forever 21, and even international food stunts like signature donuts at Krispy Kreme. Airbnb constructed its very own Dream House in Malibu and posted it for rent to the public.
Gerwig’s film is tracking for an $80 million-plus debut when it finally hits North American cinemas on July 21, before rolling out globally. The film faces two significant competitors – most notably, Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” and Tom Cruise’s “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part 1.” The latter will be in its second week of release when Barbie pulls up to cineplexes in her convertible.
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