Barbie TV Series Enters Netflix Top 10 After Movie's Success

One animated Barbie TV series is getting a major boost thanks to the new live-action movie.

By Nicole Drum

On the off chance you haven't been on social media or to a movie theater in the past week or so, the newly released live action Barbie movie is a major hit. Directed by Greta Gerwig and starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, the film has been a box office sensation, smashing records, and triggering a wave of Barbie mania that many didn't see coming — and it's a rising tide that's lifting more than just the box office. A surprising Barbie television series is also seeing a boost thanks to the success of the Barbie movie: Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse.

The Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse animated series has cracked the Netflix Top 10 trending television shows in the United States as of July 25th, thanks in no small part to the success of Barbie. The series debuted in 2012 and ran for eight seasons across 83 episodes, following Barbie (voiced by Kate Higgins), Ken (voiced by Sean Hankinson) along with various of Barbie's friends and their lives, centered around the Dreamhouse. Currently, just 12 of the 83 total episodes are streaming on Netflix.

Could Barbie Get a Sequel?

With all of the success of Barbie, it's clear that there's an audience willing to turn out for the iconic doll and that's already led to questions about a possible sequel. It's something that Mattel CEO Ynon Kriez recently spoke about, noting that Barbie is a "very rich universe" that they could explore.

"Successful movies lend themselves to more movies. Our ambition is to create film franchises," Kreiz said.

"Barbie, as a brand, has many different iterations. The product lines of Barbie is a very broad brand. In addition to the main Barbie figure, she has family, she has a lot of elements around in her universe," he continued. "It's a very rich universe… It's a very broad and very elastic brand, in terms of opportunities."

"At the outset, we're not saying, 'Okay, let's think already about movie two and three.' Let's get the first one right and make that a success. And if you do that, opportunities open up very quickly, once you establish the first movie as a successful representation of a franchise on the big screen."

Greta Gerwig Isn't Working on a Sequel, at Least Not Yet

While Mattel sounds like they are keen on building a Barbie franchise, Gerwig recently told The New York Times that, from her perspective, she doesn't currently have an idea in mind for a Barbie sequel.

"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."

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What Is the Barbie Movie 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. 

Barbie is in theaters now.

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