Barbie: Who Is Ruth Handler?

Greta Gerwig’s eagerly anticipated Barbie movie is now in theaters and while the film centers around Margot Robbie’s Stereotypical Barbie as she has something of an existential crisis that leads her — and Ryan Gosling’s Ken — on an adventure into the Real World that has some major ramifications for Barbieland, the film is more than just a fun romp. It’s a uniquely layered movie that takes on not just Barbie’s history and perception, but even involves some of the real-life figures involved in her story. That includes Barbie creator Ruth Handler. Played by Rhea Pearlman in the film, Handler not only invented Barbie in 1959 but also co-founded Mattel and she was an interesting figure in her own right, something Barbie doesn’t shy away from.

Warning: spoilers for Barbie beyond this point.

Pearlman’s Ruth Handler doesn’t have a huge role in the film, but it’s significant. Barbie first briefly encounters Ruth in a hidden office in the Mattel building that looks more like a vintage kitchen than an office and, for a moment, gives Barbie a respite from her escape from the Mattel CEO (Will Ferrell) who is trying to put her back into her box. It’s at the end of the film that Ruth’s true importance is revealed when she shows up in Barbieland and it is revealed that she’s the ghost of Ruth Handler and she ultimately ends up helping guide Barbie into acceptance of her newfound humanity and mortality, helping her make the choice to join the Real World for herself.

As a part of her introduction to the residents of Barbieland, the movie’s Ruth makes some jokes about her own life, revealing little details about having been charged with tax evasion and securities fraud in 1978 as well as being pushed out of Mattel over financial issues in the 1970s. She also jokes about having had a double mastectomy, a nod to the real Ruth Handler having been diagnosed with breast cancer in 1970. The result is a representation of the “mother” of Barbie that is both human and nuanced and fits beautifully into the film while also acknowledging that she, like all people, are complex and flawed and with their own stories.

“When everybody read the script here for the first time, I’m sure there were things that were like, ‘Wow, that sort of pushes things a little bit,’” producer Robbie Brenner previously told Variety (via Us Weekly). “But we all decided there were going to be moments where it might feel a little scary, but we’re going to be rewarded for that. Being safe in this world doesn’t work. We want it to be bold. Barbie is bold. She’s done incredible things. She’s a trailblazer. And that’s what we did.”

Greta Gerwig Also Didn’t Shy Away From a Snyder Cut Joke

There are plenty of laughs to be had in Barbie, and there’s one moment that pokes fun at another Warner Bros. project: Zack Snyder’s Justice League. The joke is in good fun, but there’s no denying that fans of Snyder are one of the most intense groups of people on the Internet. In the movie, Writer Barbie (Alexandria Shipp) is awoken after being brainwashed by Kens, and she describes it as follows: “It’s like I’ve been in a dream where I was really invested in the Zack Snyder cut of Justice League.” While this is a pretty innocent joke, there are already people upset about it on social media. It feels like the joke is poking fun at fans rather than Snyder himself, so ComicBook.com recently asked Barbie director Greta Gerwig about it. Turns out, she’s not well-versed in the Snyder fandom.  

“I didn’t even really realize that,” Gerwig said when asked about antagonizing such a forceful group of fans. “I didn’t even… Because I don’t have a dog in this fight, I didn’t even really know, I knew it was a thing. I don’t know the contours of all the ins and outs. But it’s the kind of thing that I vaguely know. But I think that was the thing, that it was like if [Writer Barbie] had a vague knowledge of, and then all of a sudden in a certain state, it really meant a lot to her, and then it went away.” 

Everything You Need to Know About Barbie

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 . 

Barbie is in theaters now.