The Barbie movie has been coming together for a while. Originally it was set to star Amy Schumer, but she dropped out of the film, saying there were scheduling conflicts. Now Sony and Mattel may have found another lead for the toy-based flick, and that lead is none other than Anne Hathaway.
When I think about Barbie, I think about dishwater blonde hair and legs for days, which are not things I typically think about when I think about Anne Hathaway. Yes I know Barbie has changed shapes and sizes recently, but with Hathaway's deep brown hair, she's more of a Teresa, if you ask me. However, The Ankler says she's currently in talks for Sony's Barbie film, and if the talks end up landing Hathaway the contract, she's set to star. She's not the only one in talks for the movie, either, which finally seems like it could get off of the ground. Director Alethea Jones may be the person directing the movie, should her talks also go well.
If you know the premise of the Barbie movie--provided it hasn't changed drastically since Amy Schumer quit--you should know that this is really going to be a Barbie out of water story. The movie will follow a young Barbie who doesn't fit in in her world. (Barbieland? Barbieville? Dreamhouse suburb? We'll keep you posted.) She'll eventually travels to the regular world, where she'll figure out she can fit in.
This was the sort of gig that I felt was tailor-made for Amy Schumer, who is funny and delightful but has been dealing with bad press of late, both because Snatched underperformed and because of those joke-stealing claims. That's not why she's out on the Barbie movie, although if Sony is choosing the far more serious Anne Hathaway, it's clear the studio is going in a very different direction with the project. That's not necessarily a bad thing, it's just, well, different.
The Barbie movie had already been given a theatrical release date and has been expected to come out on June 29, 2018. THR reports that Sony really doesn't want to move the movie out of the timeslot the studio has staked out and if Anne Hathaway can't accommodate, she may not get the gig, after all. So, we'll keep you posted if a deal goes through or the search process is started again. One thing is for certain, though. If Sony wants to keep that release date next summer, it needs to find a lead actress and flesh out the rest of the cast much sooner rather than later. While we wait to see if the date stands, take a look at what movies are definitely coming up with our full movies premiere schedule.
