Among Margot Robbie’s many exciting upcoming projects, which include her return as Harley Quinn in Birds of Prey and portraying Sharon Tate in Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, she is also set to play the leading doll in the first live-action Barbie film.
When Robbie was announced to star in Barbie back in October, Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins was reportedly being eyed to direct. However, when Jenkins was recently asked, she explained that she never signed on. Here’s what she said:
I love Barbie as well, and see an interesting thing. It’s something we talked about, it’s not something I’m planning on doing. My schedule — I’m not really available to do it any time soon. It’s fun to talk about it; I’m not the person directing it at the moment.
Bummer! Patty Jenkins would have been a great choice to helm the upcoming Barbie movie and it makes a lot of sense why she was approached for the job. 2017’s Wonder Woman was met with warm positive reception, namely because of how it portrayed the iconic female superhero, along with making over $821 million worldwide at the box office.
Patty Jenkins was the first woman to ever direct a studio superhero film, and with the $9 million she will get for helming the sequel, Wonder Woman 1984, she’s the highest paid female director in history. So why not get her to lead the movie about the most iconic doll there is?
As Patty Jenkins told recently Deadline, she just doesn’t have the time to direct Barbie at this time. She recently wrapped filming Wonder Woman 1984 and will likely be working on finishing the product until its release in summer 2020.
Patty Jenkins hasn’t announced any projects after the Wonder Woman sequel is finished, but has recently expressed her interest in concluding Diana Prince’s story with a third film. Wonder Woman 3 has not yet gotten the green light by Warner Bros., but Jenkins revealed she has plans about how she’d want to end the trilogy.
If the director’s heart (and time) wasn’t set on Wonder Woman and/or some potential unannounced projects she has in the works, she seems otherwise interested in directing Barbie. The film is currently being developed by Warner Bros., Mattel Films and Margot Robbie’s production company, LuckyChap Entertainment.
When Margot Robbie was confirmed to play Barbie, she expressed her interest to help make the film empowering to young audiences, as well as reflect the element of imagination and discovery that comes with playing with the popular toy.
A live-action Barbie movie has been in development since 2014, originally under Sony, with Amy Schumer and Anne Hathaway previously attached as to star on separate occasions. When Mattel decided to create its own film division, the project changed directions.
There's no word yet about filming details or a release date for the live-action Barbie film, but check out what movies are coming out this year with our 2019 release guide.
