In a New 'Barbie' Trailer, Reality Bites Margot Robbie

Barbie is ready to party contemplate her own mortality. A new trailer for Greta Gerwig's highly-anticipated Barbie movie has dropped, and in it, the titular doll—played by Margot Robbie—is getting existential. 

In the trailer, Barbie is questioning everything after a cold shower, falling off her roof, and losing her perfectly arched feet. Soon enough, Robbie's Barbie is confronted by Kate McKinnon's more weathered Barbie doll and given a choice: she can stay in Barbieland, or throw on a pair of Birkenstocks and venture out into the real world to “know the truth about the universe.”

In her Vogue cover story, Robbie revealed that Gerwig has been taking Barbie very, very seriously, sending Robbie episodes of This American Life and writing abstract poetry about the doll. The film is partly inspired by the 1994 bestseller Reviving Ophelia, a book about a shift that happens to American girls once they hit puberty. “How is this journey the same thing that a teenage girl feels?" Gerwig asked Vogue. "All of a sudden, she thinks, Oh, I’m not good enough.”

From the looks of the trailer, Barbie is in for her own rude awakening as Ryan Gosling's Ken tags along with her to the real world. Once landing in what appears to be Venice, California, Barbie becomes the ultimate fish out of water, discovering the male gaze for the first time—before a man smacks her butt without her consent. Naturally, Barbie punches him in the face and lands her and Ken in jail. Their mugshots are expectedly adorable, though.   

Unwanted suitors are not the only obstacle Barbie is facing in the trailer. “No one rests until this doll is back in a box,” screams Will Ferrell's toy exec.  Will Barbie find herself in the real world, or will she be forced to pack it up and return to her dream house? You'll have to wait and see when Barbie hits theaters on July 21, 2023. You can start preparing by Barbie by listening to the artists featured on Barbie's recently released soundtrack list, which include Charlie XCX, Ice Spice, and Dua Lipa. Those who made it to the end of the trailer may have noticed a snippet of what sounds like a potential Nicki Minaj remix of "Barbie Girl," the iconic song that was rumored to not be included on the Barbie soundtrack. This summer, we're all just Barbz in a Barbie world.