Two years after Warner Bros.’ “Barbie” became the highest grossing film of 2023, Mattel Studios announced Thursday it will produce an animated film based on their famed doll with Illumination that will be released by Universal Pictures.
The project will be the first theatrically released animated “Barbie” film after years of straight-to-video animated movies. It also marks Illumination’s second project based around an outside IP after it set a studio record with the $1.36 billion “Super Mario Bros. Movie” with Nintendo in 2023. A sequel to that film is set for release next year.
The “Barbie” deal comes a month after Mattel combined its film and television production divisions into Mattel Studios under the leadership of Robbie Brenner. The studio will release a film adaptation of “Masters of the Universe” with Amazon MGM in June 2026 and has a slew of other productions in development including “Matchbox” starring John Cena and “Hot Wheels” with Jon M. Chu set to direct.
The 2023 “Barbie” film, directed by Greta Gerwig, set a new studio record for Warner Bros. with $1.44 billion grossed at the global box office. It stands as the highest grossing film directed by a woman and was nominated for eight Academy Awards, including Best Picture.
The new project was first reported by Deadline.
