The Barbie 2 Skydance push is taking shape as the company prepares to close its Warner Bros. Discovery deal on Oct. 6. Skydance’s incoming leadership has begun reaching out to Margot Robbie and her production company, LuckyChap, about a sequel, Variety reported. “There’s no way Barbie 2 doesn’t happen,” one source told the outlet.
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Why the Barbie 2 Skydance push matters
Greta Gerwig’s Barbie earned about $1.4 billion worldwide in 2023 and received eight Oscar nominations, including best picture. A sequel has long looked like an obvious move, yet it has not happened.
Reports say the project stalled because Warner Bros. never locked down sequel options on the original film. After Barbie became a phenomenon, the studio needed new deals with Robbie, Gerwig and co-writer Noah Baumbach, and with Ryan Gosling, who reportedly sought $20 million plus a share of profits. Former studio leaders have said they could not reach agreements despite making substantial offers, according to Complex.
The first Barbie film, the starting point for the Barbie 2 Skydance effort, was produced by Warner Bros. with Mattel Films and Robbie’s LuckyChap Entertainment. Gerwig directed it and co-wrote the script with Baumbach, and Robbie and Gosling starred as Barbie and Ken. It became Warner Bros.’ highest-grossing release, which is why the lack of a sequel has drawn so much attention from fans and from the industry.
The standoff also stretched across a change at the top. One report said the sequel languished for years under former Warner Bros. Discovery chief David Zaslav, despite repeated offers to the talent involved.
Who is driving the effort
Josh Greenstein and Dana Goldberg, Paramount’s film chiefs, are set to run the combined movie studios, as we covered in our report on Greenstein and Goldberg leading the Paramount and Warner Bros. film unit. Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group heads Pamela Abdy and Michael De Luca, who had been negotiating the sequel, are leaving the studio, as our De Luca and Abdy exit story explains.
Skydance CEO David Ellison has said the merged company will operate under the Skydance name, while Warner Bros. and Paramount remain distinct studio brands. Ynon Kreiz, who has led Mattel since 2018, is set to become co-CEO when the deal closes, according to a Paramount Skydance filing. He will manage day-to-day operations and integration, while Ellison focuses on strategy and creative direction. Mattel owns the Barbie brand, a link that could matter to a sequel. Kreiz starts at Paramount on Oct. 5, the day before the expected close, and Ellison has described the goal as one integrated company that is “creator-first, tech-forward and built to scale globally.” For more on Kreiz, read about his role in Paramount’s two-CEO structure.
What is still unknown about Barbie 2
The Barbie 2 Skydance reports describe outreach and intent, not a finished deal. They do not mention a release date, a director or a cast. Warner Bros. had been pursuing agreements for years before the leadership change, and it is not yet clear whether Gerwig, Robbie or Gosling will return.
The effort also fits a wider reshuffle at Warner Bros. The studio has had hits recently, including A Minecraft Movie and Sinners, but its motion picture group posted heavy losses this year, according to Variety’s earlier reporting.
What’s next for Barbie 2
The merger is due to close Oct. 6, and the new leadership team will take over from there. Any formal announcement about the Barbie 2 Skydance project, including talent and a timeline, would likely follow once the deal is complete and the new executives settle in.
