Plot details for Margot Robbie’s “Barbie” movie have been under tight lock and key, but rumors have circulated for months that the movie features several actors as different iterations of Barbie and Ken. That rumor has been seemingly confirmed by Emma Mackey, the “Sex Education” breakout and “Death on the Nile” star who told Empire magazine that all of the Barbies featured in “Barbie” had a sleepover at the start of filming. Mackey was in attendance, so it seems likely she is also playing Barbie in the film.
“Right in the beginning, we had a sleepover for the Barbies, which would involve playing games with Scott [Evans] and Ncuti [Gatwa],” Mackey said. “I don’t play games usually, because I get so competitive and angry. But Scott and I were top of the game.”
Joining Robbie in “Barbie” as different iterations of Barbie are reportedly Mackey, Issa Rae, Alexandra Shipp and Hari Nef, among others. Ryan Gosling stars in the film as Ken, but actors such as “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” breakout Simu Liu are rumored to also be playing Ken as well. Given that Evans and Gatwa were at the Barbie sleepover, who knows what else writer-director Greta Gerwig has planned for her cast.
“She’s everything I could have dreamed of,” Mackey told Empire magazine about working with Gerwig. “She’s so invested and precise, and so childishly delighted by what she’s doing. Scorsese said, ‘Never lose the amateur in you.’ I see Greta behind her monitor laughing, and she’ll reference something very niche and it will make total sense in that moment. Her mind is fizzing all the time. I love being around those kinds of people.”
Mackey went on to describe “Barbie” as “light and funny and silly and American and pink.” Co-star Simu Liu said earlier this year that the movie is “wild” and “incredibly unique.” He also echoed Mackey in his praise of Gerwig’s on-set behavior.
“When you’re doing a scene and it’s working, you hear, ‘HAHAHAHA!’ It’s the best feeling in the world,” Liu said. “If you’re an asshole on a Greta Gerwig set, there’s no hope for you.”
“Barbie” will open in theaters July 21, 2023 from Warner Bros.
From Variety US