Conservative politicians and right-wing media have attacked the new Barbie movie and called for a boycott over the presence of LGBTQI characters and actors.
Right-wing figures accused the Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling starrer of neglecting its “core audience” and pushing forth a “trans agenda”.
With the movie expected to be a summer blockbuster, Rolling Stone magazine reported that the supposed right-wing boycott calls were “flopping”.
Barbie is an American fantasy comedy film that is based on the popular doll character created by Mattel and stars Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling. Directed by Greta Gerwig, the film has faced a backlash by right-wing media outlets, raising concerns about its content and themes.
The LGBT Agenda
Christian website MovieGuide accused the Barbie film of disregarding “pro-family and biblical values” and “pushing lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender character stories”. MovieGuide’s review was titled in all caps, “WARNING: DON’T TAKE YOUR DAUGHTER TO BARBIE”, describing the film as “poorly made” and pushing transgender character stories.
The anonymous reviewer asserted that the film had disregarded its natural audience of young girls, quoting a Movieguide staff member who said, “Mattel chose to cater to a small percentage of the population who has proven over and over to abandon the box office”.
The review was reposted by news outlet Fox News and led to a #boycottbarbie campaign on Twitter, which Rolling Stone labelled as “half-hearted”.
Barbie actor Simu Liu’s Screen Rant interview, where he said the film puts “the final nail in the coffin of that very heteronormative idea of what gender is” also did not endear the film to right-wing trolls.
‘Low T From Ken’
Thinking about watching the Barbie movie?
I’d recommend sticking to getting outfit inspiration and skipping the theater. Here’s why:
The Barbie I grew up with was a representation of limitless possibilities, embracing diverse careers and feminine empowerment.
The 2023 Barbie… pic.twitter.com/AsparSgvS4
— Ginger Gaetz (@LuckeyGinger) July 18, 2023
Republican political Matt Gaetz and his wife Ginger walked the red carpet at the film’s premiere on Tuesday. Ginger later criticised the film accusing Barbie of neglecting “to address any notion of faith or family, and tries to normalize the idea that men and women can’t collaborate positively (yuck)”. Ginger also claimed “disappointingly low T from Ken” portrayed by Gosling. (Ken dolls are traditionally missing their genitals).
Meanwhile, Republican Senator Ted Cruz alleged the presence of Chinese “propaganda”, accusing the film of pandering to Chinese censors and to young girls through its portrayal of a disputed region in the South China Sea.
“There’s a scene in ‘Barbie,’ where there is this map of the world, and it’s drawn like with crayon. I mean, it’s really a very simple cartoon. And so they have this blockish thing that is called ‘Asia.’ And then they’ve drawn what are called the nine-dashes,” Cruz said in an interview with The Daily Signal on Sunday.
“This is Chinese communist propaganda in which the Chinese are asserting sovereignty over the entirety of the South China Sea. And they don’t have any right to it under international law, but they are trying to take it away from their neighbours there,” Cruz added.
Trans Actor Targeted With Hate
Last month, Turning Point USA’s Charlie Kirk described the Barbie film as “trans propaganda that is in this hyper-feminine, ultra-pink propaganda thing, but it’s really been taken over by the trans mafia”, on his show.
Substack blogger Peachy Keenan spoke on The Charlie Kirk Show, describing the film as one that had a “coalition of rainbow Barbies” with “one who’s a lesbian in real life and there’s also another actress who’s also a lesbian”.
Keenan said that she found it “incredible” that the “transgender woman Barbie is Doctor Barbie”. She expressed shock over this casting decision, before stating “What more do you need to know” and declaring that she believed the movie was not suitable for kids.
In a recent interview with Out Magazine, trans actress Hari Nef, who plays Doctor Barbie described her experience on set as “literally the most preposterous, once-in-a-lifetime, exciting, orgasmic opportunity to go all in on this one little thing that I love so much, which is clothes and looks and fashion and the fantasy”.
Nef explained that she didn’t consider her Doctor Barbie role as one that was a direct example of trans representation as “Barbies are Barbies, they’re not human women. They’re dolls. They don’t have genitalia.”
She recognised the importance of being part of the movie without attaching specific gender labels to the character and reflected on her journey as a trans woman. “I think as a trans girl, it’s easy to get caught up in big dreams of what you’ll become. And it’s inevitable that you’ll get struck down by external messages and obstacles of what you’ll never be and what you won’t be able to do”, she said.
“As much as there’s a celebration of femininity and being a girl in this [movie], I think there’s also an encouragement of letting go of the checklist we ascribe to living and living your life and being in your body your way, on your own terms. The best that we can do as women, as trans women, is be there for each other and take ourselves at face value, without relying on the green light from someone or anyone else”, Nef added.
Barbie is out in theatres in Australia from July 20, 2023.
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