Netflix is staying in business with Mattel, as a new long-term agreement will keep Barbie programming on the streamer. Barbie: Mermaid Power is one of the latest offerings to stream on Netflix, with the new movie featuring the Malibu and Brooklyn versions of Barbie Roberts up in a new Mermaid-themed story. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the first project from the new Mattel/Netflix deal is an interactive special titled Barbie: Epic Road Trip. Mattel Television will produce series and specials based on the popular Barbie line, along with non-exclusive titles for other outlets.
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“Barbie: Epic Road Trip further strengthens Barbie’s ability to inspire, empower and entertain kids on a global level,” said Fred Soulie, Senior VP and General Manager of Mattel Television, in a statement. “We’ve been consistently expanding the presence of Barbie on the ever-growing streaming landscape through episodic series, long-form movies and specials, digital gaming, YouTube short-form content, and now, our first-ever interactive special. We couldn’t be more excited by this new era of Barbie content and for audiences to involve themselves with Barbie as they never have before.”
Barbie: Epic Road Trip features Barbie “Malibu” Roberts, Barbie “Brooklyn” Roberts, Ken and Skipper as they take a cross-country road trip to find homes for shelter animals — but a potentially life-altering opportunity also awaits them in New York. Viewers will be able to shape the story via interactive elements, with more than 100 decisions and 500 possible story combinations.
Executive producers on Barbie: Epic Road Trip are Fred Soulie and Christopher Keenan, Mattel Television Senior VP of Global Content. Ann Austen is a co-executive producer and lead writer. Aury Wallington is a writer, and Conrad Helten is the series director.
“Giving viewers the opportunity to choose different versions of Barbie’s stories is an all-new way for Mattel Television to deepen the worldwide audience’s experience of watching Barbie content,” Keenan said in a statement. “As kids and parents immerse themselves in the world of Barbie, they can take part in crafting a multitude of adventures for Malibu and Brooklyn, along with Ken and sister Skipper, by making choices for the characters at every twist and turn. This new storytelling format is full of endless possibilities.”
Fans have a lot of interesting Barbie content to look forward to from Netflix in the coming years. Barbie: Epic Road Trip debuts October 25th on Netflix.
