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Greta Gerwig on Barbie’s Origins, Margot Robbie’s Arched Foot, and the Barbie vs. Oppenheimer Box Office Rivalry

Greta Gerwig on Barbie's Origins, Margot Robbie's Arched Foot, and the Barbie vs. Oppenheimer Box Office Rivalry

The world premiere of Barbie was held in Los Angeles on Sunday, and director Greta Gerwig spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about the film’s origins, the viral response to Margot Robbie’s arched foot, and the Barbie vs. Oppenheimer box office rivalry.

Gerwig said that she and Noah Baumbach wrote the script for Barbie during the COVID-19 lockdown. “We were like, I don’t even know if there’s going to be movies again, but if there are, let’s write the most outrageous, anarchic, hilarious thing,” she said. “Let’s imaginary go out with a bang.”

Gerwig also weighed in on the reaction to Robbie’s arched foot, which stays arched when she steps out of her heels. “I did always think of the arched foot as like a bat signal, but everybody was like ‘I’ve heard the bat signal, I’ve answered the call!'” she said.

The director also addressed the Barbie vs. Oppenheimer box office rivalry. “It’s all love — double up, double up twice,” she said. “I think you’ve got to see what the experience is, Barbie then Oppenheimer, Oppenheimer then Barbie. I think you’ve got to take all of the journeys.”

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Issa Rae, who stars as President Barbie, also spoke to THR about the film. She said that she was surprised by Robbie’s arched foot, but that it is “already an iconic foot.” Rae also said that she thinks the competition between Barbie and Oppenheimer is “hilarious.”

The film’s stars also spoke about the Easter eggs that are hidden throughout the film. Robbie said that one of her favorites is a scene where she meets Ruth Handler, the woman who created Barbie. When Handler hands Robbie a cup of tea, their hands touch in a way that is reminiscent of a biblical reference.

America Ferrera, who also stars in the film, said that she was emotional when she saw the Barbie Land sets for the first time. “It just evoked a deeper childhood nostalgia for imagination and play and beauty,” she said. “The world Greta created is just unbelievable; she’s such a visionary.”

Simu Liu, who plays one of the Kens in the film, said that Barbie Land is “kind of perpetual sunset in Barbie Land, it’s always golden hour.” He also said that he and Ryan Gosling’s Ken have a “delicious dynamic” in the film.

Barbie hits theaters on July 21.

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