From Harley-Quinn to Barbie

After playing the crazy Harley Quinn, actress Margot Robbie is enlisted to star in the live-action Barbie.

The live-action film based on the popular doll has been in development for years now. The film joins a long list of Mattel toy brands getting the live-action treatment, including a Polly Pocket film starring Lily Collins and a Rock'em Sock'em Robots flick with Vin Diesel at its helm.

The Barbie movie has spent about a decade being tossed around various Hollywood studios. It started at Universal before moving to Sony. At that time, Amy Schumer was set to star in the film as the titular doll in 2016 before dropping out due to scheduling conflicts. Then, Anne Hathaway was selected to fill her place. And while plans for shooting began to shape up, the film rights went back into the hands of Mattel, who sold the rights to Warner Bros. It was then when Robbie was selected to star as the doll and serve as a producer through her LuckyChap Entertainment group. Greta Gerwig signed on to write the script and direct as well. 

In a recent interview for Vogue, Robbie admits it's not an easy role to take on. Robbie said: "Right, it comes with a lot of baggage! And a lot of nostalgic connections. But with that come a lot of exciting ways to attack it. People generally hear 'Barbie' and think, 'I know what that movie is going to be,' and then they hear that Greta Gerwig is writing and directing it, and they're like, 'Oh, well, maybe I don't...'"

Robbie's role in the Suicide Squad franchise and production credits for films like I, Tonya and Promising Young Woman are examples of her dedication to showing strong female characters on the big screen. And with Gerwig's directing experience on films like Little Women and Lady Bird, it seems impossible for this duo not to have a deep and creative take on the story. While films based on toy brands come with skepticism, the Barbie film is shaping up to be worth the wait for filmmakers to get it right.