Sound the alarm—the first footage of Barbie has arrived.
We’ve spent most of 2022 trying to predict what Greta Gerwig’s Barbie movie might be about. We’ve also spotted Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling rollerblading all over the streets of Los Angeles. But finally, our first real look has arrived. After debuting in theaters ahead of Avatar: The Way of the Water, the first teaser trailer for Barbie landed online today, previewing the event of 2023—hell, of the century.
Opening with a scene that references 2001: A Space Odyssey, the trailer introduces Barbie as the very first doll that wasn't a baby. Barbie stands, plastic and perfect, in a land full of cavewoman. She’s 100 feet tall. Little girls toss and violently smash their juvenile Bitty Babies and excitedly run their fingers over Barbie’s legs.
“Since the beginning of time,” the narration begins, “since the first little girl ever existed, there have been dolls. But the dolls were always and forever baby dolls—until…”
The teaser then previews the array of costumes Barbie gets to wear in a rapid montage. We see Robbie sporting a striped swimsuit (inspired by the original Barbie doll’s outfit), a dazzling checkered-pink, ’50s-style dress, perfect chunky sunglasses, and a sequined get-up with big, curly hair. If you haven’t sent your Christmas list in yet, you’re going to want to ask for Barbie-styled outfits to wear in 2023.
There's also a quick shot of a bleached-blonde Gosling as Ken, playing some sort of sport in a black leather vest with fringe—unbuttoned to reveal his tanned abs. We also see Issa Rae, who's reportedly playing another version of Barbie, in a pink jumpsuit and wearing a sash that says, “President.”
Along with Robbie, Gosling, and Rae, the star-studded cast also includes Will Ferrell, Emma Mackey, Nicola Coughlan, Kate McKinnon, Michael Cera, Emerald Fennell, America Ferrera, and Hari Nef. The film is directed by Gerwig, who co-wrote the script with her partner Noah Baumbach.
Also co-starring is Rhea Perlman, who gave The Daily Beast’s Obsessed a taste of what we can expect from the new movie earlier this year. “I can tell you it’s going to be a really great film. It’s not just some ditzy movie about a doll,” she said in August. “It is really going to be a great film. Greta Gerwig is great at directing it, and Margot Robbie is the main Barbie. It’s very different and quite beautiful and really fun. I couldn’t have had a better time.”
Echoing this praise is Simu Liu, who also stars in the film. In an interview with Variety, he called Barbie “one of the best scripts” he’s ever read. Okay, why do we have to wait half a year for this movie? Can’t we see it tomorrow?
Alas, we’ll have to make it through the end of the year. Barbie premieres in theaters July 21, 2023.
