Margot Robbie Barbie Icebergs

It is one of the most keenly anticipated Hollywood blockbusters this year, with Margot Robbie playing Barbie in what the first trailers have suggested is a brightly coloured comic romp.

Despite an executive from toy company Mattel telling Time magazine it is “not a feminist movie”, a preview of 25 minutes of footage suggests

“I feel very grateful that Margot came to me almost four years ago and said ‘would you want to write a Barbie thing?’ ” she said. “And I’m grateful that in my postpartum haze of four years ago I said yes.”

Barbie: Barbie New Trailer Out; Margot Robbie Takes Journey Into The Real World

Gerwig was speaking at a media launch for the film at Bondi Icebergs, alongside Robbie and fellow stars Issa Rae and America Ferrera, above the iconic beach pool that had been given a Barbie makeover. It’s the start of an international promotional tour for a movie that opens in Australian cinemas on July 20.

Robbie, who is a producer as well as star, said she learnt the rights were available after Mattel had struggled to make a

“It seemed like a very big and exciting and scary exciting opportunity, ” she said. “The word itself is globally recognised. And, not only that, people have very strong feelings about Barbie in a lot of cases.”

Margot Robbie Reveals Backstory Behind Iconic Barbie Foot Shot

While the storyline has been tightly guarded so far, the movie starts with Barbie having a perfect life in the luridly pink Barbie Land. But a series of unexpected developments force her to head into the real world. Boyfriend Ken, played by Ryan Gosling, stows away in her pink convertible.

Writer described it as “a satire of a toy company’s capitalist ambitions, a searing indictment of the current fraught state of gender relations, a heartwarming if occasionally cliched tribute to girl power [and] a musical spectacle filled with earworms from Nicki Minaj and Dua Lipa”.

“The thing about how our story is constructed is that Barbie can be anything, ” she said. “Barbie can be president, Barbie can be a Nobel Prize winner.

Margot Robbie Glitters In Pink Mini Dress For 'barbie' Party On Press Tour: Photos

“You see all this stuff in the beginning of the movie that sets up how incredibly intelligent Barbie is. But at the same time she hasn’t been exposed to so many concepts that she’s going to be exposed to in the real world.”

Had done, I don’t know if people would have given us the budget we got, ” she said. “Hopefully we can be an extra stepping stone for the next thing.”

Star who plays an “every woman” named Gloria in the real world, said she did not relate to Barbie growing up but believes the movie will help girls of colour feel more represented on screen.

Margot Robbie's Barbie Promotions Fashion

“As ‘little girl America’ finishing that script and trying to wrap my mind around the fact that somebody had expanded the Barbie world where there was space for somebody like me – and not because I had transformed into some unattainable expectation but because our culture has shifted to make space for people like us – is so beyond moving and inspiring, ” she said.

“You see all this stuff in the beginning of the movie that sets up how incredibly intelligent Barbie is. But at the same time she hasn’t been exposed to so many concepts that she’s going to be exposed to in the real world.”

Had done, I don’t know if people would have given us the budget we got, ” she said. “Hopefully we can be an extra stepping stone for the next thing.”

Star who plays an “every woman” named Gloria in the real world, said she did not relate to Barbie growing up but believes the movie will help girls of colour feel more represented on screen.

Margot Robbie's Barbie Promotions Fashion

“As ‘little girl America’ finishing that script and trying to wrap my mind around the fact that somebody had expanded the Barbie world where there was space for somebody like me – and not because I had transformed into some unattainable expectation but because our culture has shifted to make space for people like us – is so beyond moving and inspiring, ” she said.