Netflix, Shondaland Acquire Rights To ‘Black Barbie: A Documentary’ Film
As Greta Gerwig’s Barbie film has caused a worldwide buzz, a new docu-film based on the untold story of the first Black Barbie doll is coming to Netflix via Shondaland.
Produced and directed by Lagueria Davis, Black Barbie: A Documentary celebrates “the momentous impact three Black women (Beulah Mae Mitchell, Kitty Black Perkins, and Stacey McBride Irby) working at Mattel had on the evolution of the Barbie brand as we know it.”
The synopsis reads, “Through these charismatic insiders’ stories, the documentary tells the story of how the first Black Barbie came to be in 1980, examining the importance of representation and how dolls can be crucial to the formation of identity and imagination.“
Although an official trailer is unavailable as of publication, a previous clip of the doc was shown at SXSW 2023.
According to a review of the teaser by The Hollywood Reporter, Black Barbie includes “topics of conversation [including] the Barbie vlogs on racism during the height of the 2020 protests and feeble attempts to give Black Barbie her own stories. Interesting as these subjects are, there’s a breathless quality to their unfolding here — an understandable effort to say as much as possible within a limited running time.”
Davis spoke of the doc, stating, “Telling Black Barbie’s story has been such a personal journey and it warms my heart to celebrate the legacy of my aunt Beulah Mae Mitchell, Kitty Black Perkins, and Stacey McBride Irby in our film. We couldn’t have asked for better collaborators than Shondaland and Netflix to bring this story to the world.”
Rhimes, along with Betsy Beers for Shondaland, Grace Lay and Sumalee Montano for LinLay Productions, Camilla Hall for Lady & Bird Films, as well as Milan Chakraborty and Jyoti Sarda, have executive produced the forthcoming Netflix special. Aaliyah Williams also serves as producer.
As Gerwig’s film has shown a more bubbly, bright side of the Mattel doll and it’s impact on the toy industry, viewers will also get to see another untold side of Barbie history.
As of now, a premiere date has not been announced.
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