Barbie 2 may not happen. Warner Bros. has made more than six offers to the original creative team — Greta Gerwig, Noah Baumbach, Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling — and every one has been rejected, with the latest described by a studio source as the biggest the company has ever put to a filmmaking team.
The first film grossed more than $1.4bn worldwide, the highest total in Warner Bros. history. Variety reports the studio now has roughly four months to put another Barbie movie into active development before the rights revert to Mattel.
Six offers, all rejected
The negotiations have run for three years. The most recent offer, made late this spring, is said by a studio source to be the highest Warner Bros. has ever offered a filmmaking team and its stars — “life-changing money”, as one source put it. Another deal source disputes the benchmark, noting that while the combined package may be historic, the individual compensation is not.
“We have a rights deal with Mattel in place and have made a series of big offers to try and finalize deals to make the next ‘Barbie’ film. Unfortunately, we have been unable to reach an agreement thus far.”
Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy, Warner Bros. Pictures co-chairs, in a statement to Variety
CAA, which represents all four creatives, has not countered the latest offer. The team’s asks include higher upfront fees and a larger share of the back end — Gosling is reportedly seeking $20 million to reprise Ken, while Robbie is projected to have made roughly $50 million in salary and back end from the first film, with one studio source saying her final figure runs “well ahead” of that. The team is not seeking first-dollar gross.
Why Barbie 2 has a December deadline
Gerwig and Baumbach have an idea for the sequel, confirmed to Variety by two sources, but they will not discuss it until the contracts are signed. The original 2023 deals carried no sequel obligations: the studio’s previous regime did not secure options on a director who had never handled large-scale IP.
If no agreement is reached, Mattel cannot use a shred of Gerwig’s film as a jumping-off point — the next Barbie movie would be a full reboot with a new filmmaker, new cast and new concept. tbreak covered the original deadline report earlier this month; Variety’s latest reporting adds that WB film chiefs De Luca and Abdy have roughly four months to prevent that.
Zaslav digs in as Mattel watches
The standoff sits with David Zaslav, in what could be his final months running Warner Bros. Discovery as the Paramount acquisition looms.
“How is it not in the interest of WBD shareholders to have a sequel to the biggest film in the studio’s history?”
a source with close knowledge of the deal, via Variety
One rival executive’s summary was shorter: “Classic Zas.” Mattel has its own reasons to want this settled — doll sales are down from the 2023 spike, and the company is rebranding Barbie as a fashion icon. It has a deal ready with Warner Bros. but needs the filmmaking team attached. Should David Ellison win his bid for the studio, one source said the Barbie deal “would be the first deal he makes”.
Representatives for the filmmakers, stars, studio, Mattel and CAA declined to comment for the Variety story.
Is Barbie 2 cancelled?
Not officially. No sequel has been greenlit and negotiations have stalled after six rejected offers. The project could be shelved if no deal lands before the rights revert to Mattel around December 2026.
What happens if Warner Bros. misses the Barbie 2 deadline?
The rights revert to Mattel. Mattel could not build on Greta Gerwig’s film as a jumping-off point, so the next Barbie movie would be a full reboot with a new filmmaker, cast and concept — potentially at a different studio.
Who is negotiating for the Barbie 2 creative team?
All four creatives are represented by CAA in talks led by Bryan Lourd, with Gerwig’s lawyer Tara Kole also involved. The agency has not countered Warner Bros.’ latest offer.
