Barbie Star Margot Robbie Addresses Sequel

After dominating the global box office in 2023, earning a whopping $1.4 billion and receiving nearly universal acclaim, Barbie seems like a movie ripe for the sequel treatment. Given how obsessed the entertainment is with franchises at the moment, it's honestly a bit surprising there haven't already been several Barbie sequels and spinoffs forced into development. Part of that may be because the people that made the movie were never focused on building a franchise, instead choosing to put every ounce of energy they had into that one film.

Speaking to AP Entertainment, Barbie star and producer Margot Robbie was asked about the potential for a second Barbie movie. She obviously didn't rule anything out, but Robbie was quick to say that she and director Greta Gerwig didn't make a ton of plans for future movies.

"I think we put everything into this one. We didn't build it to be a trilogy or something," Robbie explained. "It was like Greta put everything into this movie, so I can't imagine what would be next."

She went on to talk about Barbie's success at the box office, and how a movie like that finding ways to win is an important moment for the industry as a whole.

"I'd say the biggest takeaway for me is that original films can still hit huge at the box office," said Robbie. "It doesn't have to be a sequel or a prequel or a remake. It can be totally original. It can still be big, given the big budget to do that. And just because there's a female lead doesn't mean it's not going to hit all four quadrants, which is, I think, a misconception that a lot of people still have. So it's really important that Barbie did well. As much as it is nice, it's also really important that it does well so people can also, in the future, have big original ideas and be given the budget to execute them properly."

“Barbie 2”? Margot Robbie on whether there will be a sequel to her summer hit. She produced and starred in Greta Gerwig’s film, which made over $1.4 billion at the box office. pic.twitter.com/x6dsIOq3iJ

— AP Entertainment (@APEntertainment) November 17, 2023

Robbie, like everyone else involved with Barbie, has spent months heaping praise on Gerwig for her fearless direction and creative vision. During a recent Deadline Contenders panel for the film, Robbie told everyone in attendance that Gerwig "changed the game" with her bright pink blockbuster.

"I'll just jump in and say what Greta is too humble to say," she said. "She has literally changed the game. From now on, it's different because of what she's done. It's massive. And someone is going to come forward with another original idea that requires a big budget, and there's going to be a female lead, and they're going to point to Barbie and say, 'But that made money.' Everyone's gonna go, 'Oh, right we're gonna have to green light this.' And that's amazing."