Margot Robbie To Play Barbie In Live-Action Film?
Margot Robbie has reportedly been picked out to portray Barbie in a live-action film that will revolve around the Mattel doll.
This information was made public in the latest release from Wikileaks, which published 170,000 emails they’d gathered from the Sony hack.
According to Metro, the 24-year-old Australian actress is the first choice for the film, which Doug Belgrad, Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group’s president, discussed during a round of emails.
“As far as who would play Barbie probably an ingenue,” Belgrad explained. “I like Margot Robbie, for instance. Or possibly a discovery.”
Belgrad’s idea was immediately supported by Laurie MacDonald, the producer behind Gladiator, Men In Black, and The Ring, who wrote about Robbie, “She is Barbie come to life – she’d be great.”
In fact, Margot Robbie, who has previously starred in Focus and will portray Harley Quinn in Suicide Squad, is already interested in the part. Hannah Minghella, who is the co-president of production over at Sony’s Columbia Pictures division, confirmed that the actress had already been pitched the project, which she immediately declared she’d be keen on.
“Bugliari and JP pitched Margot the idea for Barbie and she loved it!,” Minghella wrote, while she has even earmarked a possible start date for the film. “She’s free in October once she wraps Tarzan,” Minghella declared.
Meanwhile, there have also been discussions between Minghella, Pascal and Belgrad about who might portray Barbie’s sidekick, Maggie, according to Daily Mail.
The executives are interested in hiring either Kristen Wiig, Tina Fey, Amy Schumer, Sandra Bullock, or Amy Adams for the comedic role. In the emails, Wiig is described as a “bit sad/pathetic,” while Bullock is labelled as too old.
Walter Parkes, who has previously produced Gladiator, The Ring, Catch Me If You Can, and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street, wrote, “Are we sure Sandy isn’t too old? Do we really believe she’s on the cusp of ‘losing her dream?'”
Trainwreck’s Amy Schumer is described as funny, while Parkes, who is MacDonald’s producing partner and husband, admits that the leading actresses probably won’t be paid too much because it’s a “concept movie.”
“And then there’s the money,” Parkes wrote. “This is a concept movie. We shouldn’t spend a bundle on the star. I’m not trying to undermine the idea of Sandy she’s fantastic but I just want to ask the right questions.”
Another Sony executive writes, “I like Amy Adams more than Wiig – more marketing bang there. Wiig is funny but can seem a bit sad/pathetic while Amy is entirely endearing.”
[Image via Pop Tower]
