On the surface, Margot Robbie was born to play Barbie: she’s got the figure, the hair and, judging by the trailer, the flat feet. But she wasn’t the first choice, as Amy Schumer was once attached to star as Barbie, dropping out over what she said at the time were “scheduling conflicts.” As it turns out, Schumer had a much different reason for packing away her shot at playing Mattel’s iconic doll.
Amy Schumer recently revealed to Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live (via Variety) that dropping out of Barbie came down to “creative differences”, telling the host, “I think we said it was scheduling conflicts, that’s what we said. But yeah, it really was just creative differences. But you know, there’s a new team behind it, and it looks like it’s very feminist and cool so I will be seeing the movie.” Schumer has been dropping hints as to the real reason for some time now, saying last year, “They definitely didn’t want to do it the way I wanted to do it, the only way I was interested in doing it.” While she still hasn’t offered specifics, she did tell Cohen that her own movie didn’t have that “feminist and cool” vibe.
After Amy Schumer’s departure from Barbie – which she was co-rewriting with her sister – in 2017, Anne Hathaway was in talks for the title role. Eventually, Sony lost their option rights and the project moved to Warner Bros., where it would fall onto Margot Robbie’s lap, with Greta Gerwig directing (Patty Jenkins was at one point in the running).
While Amy Schumer will never play Barbie, she has continued to be supportive of the project, saying in March 2017 when she bowed out, “The film has so much promise, and Sony and Mattel have been great partners. I’m bummed, but look forward to seeing Barbie on the big screen.”
The big screen Barbie will hit theaters on July 21st, more than 60 years after Ruth Handler’s creation first hit shelves.
Would you watch a Barbie movie starring Amy Schumer? What would she have delivered for the project? Let us know!
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