Greta Gerwig’s Barbie has become the biggest surprise of Summer 2023. Deemed a feminist icon, the film had audiences perplexed before its release. No one knew what kind of film Barbie would end up being. The film's marketing teased it as a piece of “female empowerment” cinema. In actuality, the story and its ideas were something much deeper. Viewers were not prepared for the moving, funny, and philosophical story of gender identity. It created a finished product that opened up a world of endless narrative possibilities.
The film has now made close to $500 million worldwide. Such a high overall gross has assuredly made WB want a universe of all things Barbie. Before the inevitable spin-offs happen, Barbie deserves more time in the spotlight. Gerwig needs to make a sequel to Barbie before the universe begins. There are still plenty of other stories that should be told in this satirical world. A sequel could expand upon the satire of the first film. One of the biggest reasons it deserves a sequel is Margot Robbie’s performance.
Margot Robbie Can Show the Characters Wonder
Barbie ends on a broad and hilarious punch-line with her becoming a real girl. The film ends with “Barbie” going by the human name “Barbara Handler.” Named after the creator of the Barbie Doll, Ruth Handler, it is a deeply meta ending. Ruth explains to Barbie that she deserves a chance to be human. A sequel to Barbie can focus on “Barbara” trying to live up to Ruth’s wish. It is a chance for the profoundly human ideas of the first film to be expanded upon. It can also help amplify the comedy of the first film.
A Barbie sequel could deliver more of a “fish-out-of-water” story in the human world. This can involve Barbara simply adapting to human life. While she is an adult, she could adapt to the world like a child. This could include more mundane tasks like learning to drive, work, and even having friends.
Robbie portrays “Barbara” as someone with wide-eyed innocence throughout the film. That sense of integrity and kindness can continue and evolve in the story of a sequel film. “Barbara” could be finding her identity in the human world, which is a theme Gerwig has explored in her other films. Both Lady Bird and Little Women focus on females finding their voices. A sequel can also help counterbalance a key ingredient that made Barbie such a success.
The film heavily utilized the color pink throughout its running time. In keeping the Barbie theme, Barbara can still love pink. Her love of that color can unlock another piece of satirical insight. Something as minute as a favorite color can be the next piece of the film's satirization of gender politics. Robbie’s Barbara can come to learn that girls can be into more than one thing. Something as simple as a favorite color can be expanded upon in a sequel story. Barbie, or Barbara, does not have to be the sole character who grows.
The Kens Can Gain Redemption
Ryan Gosling and fellow Kens (Simu Liu, Ncuti Gatwa, and Kingsley Ben-Adir) learned about gender roles in the first film. Gosling’s Ken learned the wrong lessons about gender roles from his adventures in Barbie. He brought those false ideas back to Barbieland and had the fellow Kens learn them. Barbie’s eventual uprising helped the Kens learn the error of their ways. A sequel Barbie film could help the Kens expand on the ideas they learned in the first film.
There is so much they could learn that the Kens could have a spin-off adventure. If they do not have a spin-off, they could have a role in the sequel. With Barbara (Barbie) being human, the Kens could decide they want a chance to exist in the human world. Their return could be showing Barbara that they are now "feminists." Gosling’s Ken could be leading the charge but might do so in an overbearing way. To protect Barbara’s “honor” or “dignity,” they could attempt to fight sexist men.
Ken's role could be to showcase Barbara’s independence within the human world. It would be a chance for them to become more modernized. The Kens might believe they must enforce Barbara’s values as a human woman. Robbie can enforce that Barbara does not need protection.
Instead of a feminist message, Ken's role can help showcase and enforce Barbara’s independence in the real world. It is a chance for Ken (Gosling) to serve a purpose for Barbara (Robbie) to carve a proper path for herself in the real world. That sort of complex continuation of the character can create a stronger and more profound sequel.
Greta Gerwig made a Barbie film that was entirely unexpected for audiences. It was a film that made viewers respond emotionally and was a financial success in the process. Both of these options can help progress and evolve Barbie’s themes. Helping those themes develop is already a natural element of Gerwig’s directing abilities.
She is someone who can take simple ideas and then expand upon them. These ingredients can help to make another successful and entertaining blockbuster hit. It could also help to amplify Gerwig as someone who is the future of blockbuster cinema. Taking the story in these new directions proves that Barbie assuredly deserves a sequel film.