Barbie Production Designer Debunks Rumors Movie Caused Pink Paint Shortage

Sarah Greenwood clarifies the film's impact on the paint industry.

By Jenna Anderson

Barbie arrived in theaters earlier this year, and the pop culture landscape hasn't quite been the same. The film caught the world's attention in countless ways — including in early headlines about how the film's brightly-colored aesthetic was brought to life. Before Barbie was released, early rumors suggested that the film had so many practical pink set pieces that it caused a major shortage of pink paint — but according to production designer Sarah Greenwood, that wasn't exactly the case.

"Yes, we found this color after lots of investigation into the perfect pink," Greenwood told Yahoo! Entertainment. "So we go to Rosco, this amazing film company that makes this beautiful pigment … but of course, nobody was using pink until we came along. And so therefore, there wasn't enough pink paint. We said, 'Oh, we want 200 liters of your pure pigment.'... And then everybody pulled together and we found pink paint in every sort of backyard workshop. We did get there in the end. But no, we didn't cause the world to run out of pink paint. There wasn't enough in the first place."

Will There Be a Barbie Sequel?

According to a recent report from The Hollywood Reporter, there are currently no options or deals in place for director and co-writer Greta Gerwig and stars Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling to return for a Barbie sequel. Robbie, in particular, is reportedly not obligated to return to her role of Stereotypical Barbie, but could return as a producer on a Barbie sequel if she wanted to.

As the report outlines, Warner Bros. Pictures "made overtures" about Gerwig possibly returning to direct a Barbie sequel, but her team delayed those talks until the first film's debut. With negotiations around new projects on hold until the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes are over, there's a chance that Gerwig, Robbie, and Gosling could return for a new Barbie movie — but they would probably have to negotiate much more lucrative contracts, in response to the film's box office performance. Gerwig has indicated that she currently does not have any ideas for a sequel film.

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"At this moment, it's all I've got," Gerwig revealed. "I feel like that at the end of every movie, like I'll never have another idea and everything I've ever wanted to do, I did. I wouldn't want to squash anybody else's dream but for me, at this moment, I'm at totally zero."

What Is Barbie About?

In Barbie, to live in Barbie Land is to be a perfect being in a perfect place. Unless you have a full-on existential crisis. Or you're a Ken. From Oscar-nominated writer/director Greta Gerwig comes Barbie, which hit theaters on July 21st. Barbie stars Oscar-nominees Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling as Barbie and Ken, alongside America Ferrera, Kate McKinnon, Michael Cera, Ariana Greenblatt, Issa Rae, Rhea Perlman, and Will Ferrell. The film also stars Ana Cruz Kayne, Emma Mackey, Hari Nef, Alexandra Shipp, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Simu Liu, Ncuti Gatwa, Scott Evans, Jamie Demetriou, Connor Swindells, Sharon Rooney, Nicola Coughlan, Ritu Arya, Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter Dua Lipa and Oscar-winner Helen Mirren. Gerwig directed Barbie from a screenplay by Gerwig & Oscar nominee Noah Baumbach, based on Barbie by Mattel. 

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