Barbie sequel hits snag: pay disputes put cast deals on ice
A new trade report says a follow-up to a Margot Robbie blockbuster is quietly taking shape, though early snags could still hold up a green light.
Here we go again: Warner Bros. is absolutely desperate to get a sequel to 2023's Barbie off the ground, but—classic Hollywood—none of the big names are actually signed on yet. According to the New York Times, the studio's been deep in talks with director Greta Gerwig and stars Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling for months now, but things haven't moved past the negotiating table.
Here's the awkward bit: Warner Bros. apparently floated a whopping $20 million offer plus box office points to Gosling, so they're clearly keen. Even so, studio boss David Zaslav isn't exactly rushing to open the company wallet—he reportedly thinks the price tag for both Gerwig and Gosling is just too much and won't approve the deals in their current state.
Unless Warner locks in deals with Margot Robbie, Greta Gerwig, and Ryan Gosling by December, the rights to Barbie go back to Mattel.
Just to make things even spicier, time is not on their side. There's a little clause hanging over proceedings: if they don't sort these contracts by December, the whole Barbie rights package bounces back to Mattel. In other words, no signed deals, no movie at all for Warner, regardless of who wants another hit (which, let's face it, is everyone exec-side besides David Zaslav's accountant).
So for now, it's a proper Hollywood staring contest. Gerwig, Robbie, and Gosling are in no rush to ink anything, Warner's management think the price is out of control, and somewhere, a Mattel lawyer is probably watching the clock more closely than any of them.