With the hugely anticipated Barbie about to open we take a look behind the scenes with 20 facts you never knew about Barbie the movie…….
- Cameras rolled on BARBIE on 21st March 2022, at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden in Hertfordshire, England, nearly two years to the date when, at the start of the pandemic, Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach shut themselves away in their New York apartment to craft the screenplay Gerwig would later sign on to direct. The entirety of the Barbie Land scenes were filmed on soundstages at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden.
- During development, director Greta Gerwig called director Peter Weir to ask about his work on “The Truman Show” in relation to lighting and creating that authentically artificial feel that she wanted for Barbie Land.
- Audiences won’t see natural sunlight until Barbie and Ken arrive in Los Angeles.
- The view outside of the Mattel boardroom was a scenic panorama. It was painted by hand and was over 250 feet long; it includes a nod to Warner Bros.—a keen eye will spot the company logo. Los Angeles is also painted in, a nod to the Emerald City from “The Wizard of Oz.”
- Kate McKinnon’s Barbie’s House has holes hidden across the set, designed to enable McKinnon to hide one of her actual legs during filming, with a fake leg up against the wall to give the impression she is in the splits.
- There are no solid black or white colours in any of the Barbie Land set designs.
- While the cast and crew filmed the “sunny” Barbie Land beach scenes on Stage N at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden, a blizzard was making life very cold for everyone outside.
- In the Barbie dance party sequence, choreographer Jennifer White deliberately included specific dance elements from Busby Berkeley’s “Gold Diggers,” one of director Greta Gerwig’s favourite films.
- There were over 30 individual hobby horses made for the Kens. They were all handmade and the art department gave them all their own individual characteristics.
- The Barbie ambulance, which rescues Ken after his surfing mishap, was a full-sized copy of a toy ambulance. Another joint effort between the departments, it automatically opens out into a doctor’s surgery, a fully realized special effect on set.
……and here’s some more facts you never knew about Barbie the movie!
- Barbie’s car was operated by a remote-controlled transmitter with a member of the SFX team sitting in a custom-built chair and using VR drone technology, enabling Margot Robbie’s Barbie to “drive” hands-free around the set.
- Barbie’s vehicle is electric, as is Ken’s Hummer, which was one of the first electric Hummers to come off the production line.
- For Barbie and Ken’s arrival in Los Angeles, director Greta Gerwig used the reference of “Midnight Cowboy” to illustrate how she wanted them to appear, specifically the sequence when Jon Voight is walking through New York City, clearly out of place.
- The Barbie DreamHouses were over 25 feet high.
- Margot Robbie did all her own stunts, including jumping from the top of the house.
- The cast and crew of “Barbie” have 50 Academy Award nominations between them and a total of eight Oscar wins.
- Will Ferrell’s character is simply named Mattel CEO, his name is never revealed. Similarly, certain Mattel employees, including Jamie Demetriou’s character, are named Mattel Executive #1, #2 etc. Ironically, only Connor Swindell’s Mattel intern is given a name, Aaron Dinkins. Inspired by the movie “Mean Girls,” every Wednesday the crew were encouraged to wear something pink. Everyone got very involved and took it seriously.
- When Barbie observes a session of the Barbie Land Supreme Court, Margot Robbie is wearing a vintage Chanel suit that had been previously worn by model and actress Claudia Schiffer.
- In “Barbie,” Margot Robbie’s Barbie never wears any rings on her fingers—a nod to the classic toy doll having fingers that are connected, and therefore don’t accommodate rings.
- The Kens may have their differences, however, they do share one thing in common apart from their adoration of the Barbies: body waxing. As director Greta Gerwig explained to them on numerous occasions, Kens are not mammals, they’re dolls.
So there’s 20 facts you never knew about Barbie the movie!
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