With Barbie having already earned $472m in five days there is obvious talk of a sequel and Mattel toys CEO Ynon Kreiz (who has a fair number of jokes made at his expense in the film) didn’t exactly confirm a Barbie movie sequel but indicated it’s coming as well as a load of TV and other brand extensions for the never-been-more-iconic doll. But what the success of Barbie means for future Mattel toys is that they are certain to go ahead with a whole raft of movies for their toys and games with even a rumour of a Mattel-Universe (Matteliverse?) as part of a larger over arching idea.
After the huge success of the film Kreiz has said that, ‘“the people who buy our products are not just consumers, they are fans…And once you have an audience, more opportunities open up to engage with your fans in many ways and to create value from that engagement.” What that means is that other top properties that include Hot Wheels and Fisher-Price will also see big screen adaptations and though not specifically mentioned it is known that there’s a Barney movie, a Polly Pocket movie and an American Girl movie all in the works.
Also what the success of Barbie means for future Mattel toys is that the company’s finances will be massively boosted with Barbie-themed merchandise with 165 brand partners at thousands of retail locations is selling out fast and whereas sales of traditional Barbie dolls which were down 7% in the second quarter, were also experiencing a boost from the film the likes of which will be known in the thrid quarter of the year when profits are announced.
What research has also uncovered is that the Barbie movie has secured older, and more male audience, than fans of the actual doll.
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source: deadline
