America Ferrera's 'Barbie' Monologue Nails the Infuriating Double Standards That Women Face

“We have to always be extraordinary, but somehow we’re always doing it wrong.”

Last Friday, I (along with much of the world) enthusiastically took my seat in my local movie theater with a pre-ordered ticket ready to see Greta Gerwig's Barbie — which would later go on to make box-office history as the highest grossing debut ever from a female director, by the way. I arrived excited for the nostalgia and the chance to see some of my favorite actors like Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling portray two iconic dolls from my childhood (and dress up in Barbiecore pink, naturally). But I exited the theater with so much more: I left feeling touched, empowered, and seen as a woman.

Much of that had to do with America Ferrera's impassioned monologue, which she delivers towards the film's conclusion. Ferrera played the human Gloria, an employee at Mattel who comes across Margot's Barbie in the real world. After joining Barbie on her mission, Ferrera travels back to Barbie Land, where Ken has turned their female-centered home into a horse-loving patriarchy.

Barbie has a catastrophic meltdown of sorts (cue the "She's not dead, she's just having an existential crisis" memes), which prompts Gloria's inspired speech about the unfair societal expectations and pressures put on women. It's a monologue that hit close to home for many audience members and has garnered many viral social media reactions.

Related: How Much Does Barbie's Dream Closet Cost?

"It is literally impossible to be a woman. You are so beautiful, and so smart, and it kills me that you don't think you're good enough. Like, we have to always be extraordinary, but somehow we're always doing it wrong," she starts off, addressing Margot's character.

"You have to be thin, but not too thin. And you can never say you want to be thin. You have to say you want to be healthy, but also you have to be thin. You have to have money, but you can't ask for money, because that's crass," she continues. "You have to be a boss, but you can't be mean. You have to lead, but you can't squash other people's ideas. You're supposed to love being a mother, but don't talk about your kids all the damn time. You have to be a career woman, but also always be looking out for other people. You have to answer for men's bad behavior, which is insane, but if you point that out, you're accused of complaining. You're supposed to stay pretty for men, but not so pretty that you tempt them too much or that you threaten other women because you're supposed to be a part of the sisterhood."

"But always stand out and always be grateful," she continues. "But never forget that the system is rigged. So, find a way to acknowledge that but also always be grateful. You have to never get old, never be rude, never show off, never be selfish, never fall down, never fail, never show fear, never get out of line."

"It's too hard! It's too contradictory and nobody gives you a medal or says thank you! And it turns out in fact that not only are you doing everything wrong, but also everything is your fault," she says. "I'm just so tired of watching myself and every single other woman tie herself into knots so that people will like us. And if all of that is also true for a doll just representing women, then I don't even know."

In the end, Gloria's speech helps the Barbies wake up from their Ken-induced stupor so they can regain their rightful control of Barbie Land. Ferrera opened up to The Los Angeles Times about how real that speech is to her and other women in her life. "There’s no woman in my life who those words aren’t true for," she told the outlet. "Not a single one. And when we hear the truth, it hits in a certain way, and you can’t unhear it, right?"

According to The Cut, the dialogue was initially written by Gerwig, but she and Ferrera reworked and workshopped the speech for months before landing on the final version in the film. Gerwig noted that shooting the powerful scene took about 30 takes and resulted in a set was filled with weepy women and men, alike. Even Meryl Streep caught wind of the monologue and was envious that Ferrera got to perform it — a fact that left Ferrera on edge.

"I mostly tried to forget about it 'till I had to do it," she told Entertainment Weekly. "Greta didn't make it easy, You were like, 'There's a monologue. Meryl Streep says she would like to do this monologue.' I was like, 'Cool, no pressure!'" 

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