LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: In her eagerly awaited 'Barbie' film, which debuted in theaters on July 21, Greta Gerwig refuted a notion regarding the identity of one actor. After the movie's release, there was much speculation that Barbara Handler, the inspiration for the Barbie doll, made an appearance in a scene with Margot Robbie's lead character while lounging in a park in Santa Monica, California.
In an April interview with TMZ about the eagerly awaited film, which hits cinemas on Friday, Barbara had said that Robbie, 33, did a successful job portraying the legendary doll. She also praised the supporting ensemble of Gerwig's film, which features Ryan Gosling, Alexandra Shipp, Issa Rae, Dua Lipa, and John Cena, as per Daily Mail.
Is Barbara Handler in the new 'Barbie' movie?
Following the release of 'Barbie,' there was much speculation about a particular character who appears in a scene with Robbie. However, the woman who was speaking to the 33-year-old Australian actress was costume designer Ann Roth and not Barbara Handler, daughter of Ruth Handler, co-founder of Mattel and creator of the Barbie doll.
Regarding the cameo by the Oscar-winning costume designer, Gerwig gushed to Rolling Stone, saying, "I love that scene so much. And, the older woman on the bench is the costume designer Ann Roth. She’s a legend. It’s a cul-de-sac of a moment, in a way — it doesn’t lead anywhere."
The 39-year-old Sacramento native responded to those who argued she "could cut" the scene by saying that without it, "the story would move on just the same" and she wouldn't know "what this movie is about."
Who invented the Barbie doll?
Ruth Handler created Mattel in 1945, with her husband Elliot Handler, serving as its first president. Ruth aimed to give Barbara's paper dolls—which she played with—life when she created the Barbie doll. In her autobiography 'Dream Doll: The Ruth Handler Story' from 1994, she discussed how she came up with the idea. Ruth discovered a novelty doll that resembled her original concept in 1956 while on vacation in Switzerland. She remarked, "Here were the breasts, the small waist, the long, tapered legs I had enthusiastically described for the designers all those years ago."
Ruth brought one home and tasked Mattel Vice President Jack Ryan with making the doll appealing to young Americans. Three years later, the well-known toy made its debut on store shelves, selling 300,000 dolls in its first year, per the manufacturer. Barbara told TMZ that her mother Ruth, who died on April 27, 2002, following surgery while fighting colon cancer, would be "happily shocked" to learn that the doll is the focus of a high-budget Hollywood production.
