Why Did Margot Robbie Compare 'Barbie' to 'Jurassic Park'?

Barbie star Margot Robbie revealed that she compared the upcoming meta-comedy to Steven Spielberg's Jurassic Park during a pitch meeting with Mattel Films and Warner Bros. Pictures.

Academy Award-nominated Margot Robbie has become one of the most notable actors/producers in Hollywood since Tom Cruise. Her love of cinema is what landed her a meeting with Mattel to talk about the possibility of LuckyChap Entertainment, which is the production company founded and spearheaded by Robbie, Tom Ackerley, Josey McNamara, and Sophia Kerr. However, Robbie's pitch of the film is what sold both studios on giving LuckyChap the green light for production.

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In an interview with Collider that took place before the SAG-AFTRA strike, Robbie unpacked the likely comparison, saying, "I think my pitch in the green-light meeting was: 'The studios have prospered so much when they're brave enough to pair a big idea with a visionary director.' And then I gave a series of examples like, 'dinosaurs and [Steven] Spielberg' -- pretty much-naming anything that’s been incredible and made a ton of money for the studios over the years. And I was like, 'And now you’ve got Barbie and [director] Greta Gerwig.' And I think I told them that it'd make a billion dollars, which maybe I was overselling, but we had a movie to make, okay?"

While Robbie was quick to point out that her box office predictions for Barbie might have been "overselling" the film, the presale data suggests that the actor/producer wasn't too far off about the film's commercial viability. With AMC already selling 20,000 movie tickets for the Barbenheimer double feature for opening weekend, Barbie is projected to make around $90M to $125 on opening weekend (according to Deadline).

Not only are Barbie's advanced ticket sales higher than any movie released in 2023 to date, but they are also the highest since Avatar: The Way of Water, which went on to bring in over $2.3 billion at the worldwide box office. Maybe Robbie wasn't overselling her pitch, and drawing all the right comparisons to make Mattel Films and Warner Bros.

It seems that the secret behind hitting that billion-dollar mark at the box office is creating a film that is designed to connect with a range of viewers. From film bros. to families, Barbie was always meant to appeal to everyone who developed any feelings toward the fashion doll and her place in pop culture.

"This is such a thing people say when they do press reveals like it's for everyone," Robbie said. "But it was literally crafted to be for everyone. [Grewig] said from the beginning, 'This is a big party and everyone is invited.' So in that way, it really is for everyone, and the comedy plays on so many different -- the whole movie plays on so many different levels."

While Robbie compared Barbie to Jurassic Park, Gerwig had a few of her own inspirations for the human world and Barbieland in the upcoming film. From American in Paris to The Godfather, read the list of Barbie references Gerwig laid out in an interview with Letterboxd.

Source: Collider