Cover Margot Robbie as Barbie (Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures)

Life in plastic, it’s fantastic

The world is about to turn real pink and sparkly.

Directed by Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird, Little Women) and co-written with her partner Noah Baumbach, Barbie is an upcoming romantic comedy film based on the eponymous toy line by Mattel. The movie will mark the first live-action film based on the world-renowned fashion doll that changed the way little girls played with dolls after a series of animated films and television series.

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Here are five things you need to know about the movie based on a Barbie girl, in the Barbie world.

1. Developing Barbie

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BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 09: Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach attends the Vanity Fair Oscar Party at Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts on February 09, 2020 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Taylor Hill/FilmMagic,)
Above Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach (Photo: Getty Images)

The movie was originally set to be rewritten by Juno screenwriter Diablo Cody with American stand-up comedienne Amy Schumer in the lead role. However, Cody departed from the project and soon after, so did Schumer, citing scheduling conflicts.

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Following Schumer’s exit, the rights were transferred to Warner Bros. Pictures. Margot Robbie took over the role of Barbie and also serves as a producer under LuckyChap Entertainment alongside Mattel Films and Heyday Films. Gerwig and Baumbach later joined to pen the script and work behind the camera to bring the story to life.

"Whatever you’re thinking, we’re going to give you something totally different—the thing you didn’t know you wanted," Robbie told The Hollywood Reporter.

2. The Plot

The plot synopsis reads: "After being expelled from Barbieland for being a less than perfect-looking doll, Barbie sets off for the human world to find true happiness." It has also been rumoured that several Barbie and Ken characters factor into the plot. Word on the street is that fans can expect as least two more Barbies and Kens.

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3. Margot Robbie as Barbie

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Above Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures

Robbie will play the movie's titular iconic doll character.

Speaking about stepping into Barbie's heels, the Suicide Squad actress said: "Right, it comes with a lot of baggage! And a lot of nostalgic connections. But with that come a lot of exciting ways to attack it. People generally hear ‘Barbie’ and think, ‘I know what that movie is going to be,’ and then they hear that Greta Gerwig is writing and directing it, and they’re like, ‘Oh, well, maybe I don’t...’”

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On April 27, Warner Bros. revealed a first-look photo of Robbie as the multi-hyphenate fashionista, dressed in a blue and white polka-dot headboard with a matching striped halter top (reminiscent of the classic American doll), smiling behind the wheel of her hot pink Chevrolet Corvette convertible.

4. Ryan Gosling as Ken

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Above Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures

Starring opposite Robbie is Hollywood heartthrob Ryan Gosling as Barbie’s long-time boyfriend Ken.

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On June 15, the film's studio revealed a dreamy snapshot of the The Notebook star as the spray-tanned-to-perfection quintessential Ken, complete with his signature platinum blonde locks, an eyebrow-raised smirk, killer eight-pack abs, and decked out in Calvin Klein-inspired 'Ken'-labelled boxers and a stone-washed denim ensemble, including an open vest and matching jeans.

5. The Rest of the Cast

Barbie boasts a star-studded cast. Aside from Robbie and Gosling, the film will also include Will Ferrell, Simu Liu, America Ferrera, Ariana Greenblatt, Ncuti Gatwa, Emma Mackey, Alexandra Shipp, Michael Cera, Issa Rae, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Rhea Perlman, and Kate McKinnon.

Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings star Simu Liu is expected to bring some doll dramedy to the table as ‘another Ken’ and he sure prepared very painfully for his role. The Marvel actor revealed he waxed his entire body for the Warner Bros. film.

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“Waxing has been an education, to say the least,” Liu told The Independent. “It was one of the most painful experiences of my life. I have such a newfound admiration for the incredibly brave women who go through this on a monthly basis.”

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