Everything to Know About the Barbie Movie

Jaap Buitendijk/Warner Bros.

Warner Bros. Pictures is bringing Barbie to life with its upcoming film.

Directed by Greta Gerwig, the film has been in the works for quite some time. Back in December 2016, Amy Schumer was originally attached to star, however, she later backed out of the film due to creative differences.

In January 2019, it was confirmed that Margot Robbie would be taking on the lead role of the iconic Mattel doll and in October 2021, Ryan Gosling joined the cast as Barbie's plastic partner, Ken.

Since then, there has been a lot of mystery surrounding the film. While Warner Bros. has released promotional images of Robbie and Gosling in character, the actual plot has been kept tightly under wraps.

Still, on Nov. 19, 2022, Gerwig hinted about Gosling's Ken costumes while on the red carpet for the Academy's Governors Awards. She told Variety that the first-look photo of Gosling in a denim costume for the movie that circulated in June is "one of many extraordinary looks" the actor will wear as Ken in her upcoming film, Barbie.

The director added that early production images of Gosling's flashy costumes are "not even close" to all the costumes the character will wear in the movie.

Robbie also hinted at the movie's toy-tastic style during a December 2022 conversation with Carey Mulligan for Variety's "Actors on Actors" series. When Mulligan asked if the film would have any Barbie houses, Robbie responded, "The Dreamhouses? You'll see some Dreamhouses. And it will be everything you ever dreamed of."

From the confirmed cast to the release date, here's everything to know about the Barbie movie.

Who is in the Barbie movie cast?

Emma McIntyre/Getty; Tommaso Boddi/Getty; Momodu Mansaray/Getty

The Barbie movie includes a number of big stars in the cast, including Robbie as Barbie and Gosling as Ken.

Will Ferrell will also be in the film, playing the CEO of Mattel. He spoke about his role in a Nov. 21, 2022 interview with the Wall Street Journal Magazine. "I get to play the CEO of Mattel and be that guy who's just insensitive but weird and then, not to spoil anything, but…. Anyway, that's what excites me," Ferrell said.

Additionally, the cast includes America Ferrera, Kate McKinnon, Michael Cera, Emma Mackey, Alexandra Shipp, Ariana Greenblatt, Emerald Fennell, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Sharon Rooney, Anna Cruz Kayne, Ritu Arya, Connor Swindells, Jamie Demetriou, and Marisa Abela.

It has also been reported that Issa Rae and Hari Nef will play alternate versions of Barbie, while Simu Liu and Ncuti Gatwa are reportedly playing alternate versions of Ken.

RELATED: Kate McKinnon Says Barbie Movie Is 'Epic' as She Recalls Going to College with Director Greta Gerwig

What is the Barbie movie about?

MEGA

There has been a lot of chatter about what the upcoming Barbie film will be about, but nothing has been confirmed so far.

It was reported that Schumer's version of the film would have centered on Barbie getting kicked out of the perfect world she lives in for not being perfect enough and finding her way in a real-world adventure.

"People don't have any idea what to expect [with the film], and I think that that's the right vibe," Ferrera told PEOPLE about the film's secretive plot. "Whatever you think it is, it's not that. It's something else."

In fact, many stars' roles have been kept under wraps as well to not give anything away.

During the 20th Unforgettable Gala, Liu teased that the film is all about "inner beauty," and that Gerwig paid special attention to diversity and inclusivity when it came to casting for the film.

"I remember very clearly about some of our big intricate dance sequences. Greta was very, very conscientious about who she cast," he said, according to Vanity Fair.

To that end, "We were able to cast people of different shapes, sizes, differently abled, to all participate in this dance — all under this message of: You don't have to be blonde, white, or X, Y, Z in order to embody what it means to be a Barbie or a Ken," Liu continued.

Is there a trailer for the Barbie movie?

The first teaser trailer for the Barbie movie dropped on Dec. 16, 2022. The 74-second clip opens with little girls playing with baby dolls in a rugged setting.

"Since the beginning of time, since the first little girl ever existed, there have been dolls," the narrator can be heard saying. "But the dolls were always and forever baby dolls. Until ..."

The camera then cuts to Robbie towering over the girls in a black-and-white striped bathing suit, black heels and white sunglasses. In awe of Barbie, the girls decided to smash their baby dolls.

Viewers then get a brief look at the playful and colorful world of Barbie.

On Dec. 17, 2022, Liu spoke to PEOPLE about the clip and his experience making the film. "It was pretty much what you see in the trailer," he said. "I feel like you can kind of surmise what kind of experience we had filming it just by watching the trailer. It's so much fun."

The actor continued, "The dancing, the laughing, all of that. That was every single day for us on set. So now to finally see that in a work form is actually surreal because we just felt like we were having fun the whole time."

Who is directing the Barbie movie?

Chelsea Lauren/REX/Shutterstock

Greta Gerwig, the mastermind behind Oscar-nominated films such as Lady Bird and Little Women, is slated to direct the film. She is also writing the screenplay for the film alongside her partner Noah Baumbach.

On The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon in July, Gosling said the Barbie film's script is the "best" he has "ever read."

When did the Barbie movie start filming?

The image direct

Filming for the movie first kicked off in March 2022. Robbie and Gosling were spotted filming scenes around L.A. in June 2022, including those now-iconic photos of them wearing rollerblade outfits at Venice Beach.

In July 2022, filming on Barbie wrapped for some of the cast, as some stars marked their last day on set with behind-the-scenes photos on Instagram.

At the 2023 Golden Globes, Robbie raved about the cast and crew culture on the set of Barbie.

"Oh, I was cracking up all the time. This was a set filled with laughter and dancing and music and good vibes, yeah," she told Variety.

Has a first look at the Barbie movie been released?

Jaap Buitendijk/Warner Bros.

The first official look at Robbie in character as the plastic toy came in April 2022 during CinemaCon, when Warner Bros. Pictures shared a first-look image. In the photo, Robbie as Barbie wore a blue-and-white polka-dotted headband and matching striped halter top, as she smiled and leaned forward in a pink Chevrolet Corvette convertible.

Warner Bros. Pictures Ryan Gosling as Ken in Barbie (2023)

The first glimpse of Gosling as Ken came in June 2022, when Warner Bros. shared a snapshot of the actor online. In the photo, Gosling posed and showed off his platinum-blond hairdo and his abs under a ripped denim jacket.

Gosling has taken pride in having a "Ken-ergy that you can feel," and on The Tonight Show, he joked about people "clutching their pearls" about the underwear-baring shots —"as though they ever thought about Ken for a second before this!" (Meanwhile, his partner Eva Mendes joked that she asked him to bring the Ken briefs home from set.)

When will the Barbie movie be released?

Backgrid

Barbie opens in theaters on July 21, 2023.