The Barbie movie hit theaters on July 21, and while the Kens are the film’s comedic relief, we’re all really here for the Barbies. Barbieland is essentially a utopia where Barbies run society and are doctors, lawyers, mermaids, and journalists. Needless to say, there’s a whole lot of girl power in Barbie. These Barbies remind girls and women that they can be anything they want to be and that no role, even that of President, is too far out of their reach.
Additionally, the Barbies are all very diverse and show there’s not one personality or style that a girl has to adhere to. As long as you don’t have flat feet, the Barbies are very accepting, too. Ultimately, the many Barbies in Barbie fully embody the qualities of girl power, from independence to confidence to empowerment. Here is every Barbie in the Barbie movie, ranked according to their level of girl power.
11. Mermaid Barbie
Dua Lipa appears in Barbie very briefly as Mermaid Barbie. As her name suggests, she is a mermaid and frequently pops out of the water to say hello to Barbie. Unfortunately, she has one of the briefest appearances in Barbie, and while a mermaid is certainly a respectable career, she doesn’t seem very involved in running Barbieland, and there aren’t super strong girl power vibes.
10. Diplomat Barbie
Nicola Coughlan appears in Barbie as Diplomat Barbie. Her cameo is also quite brief, but she can be spotted handing out prestigious awards to her fellow Barbies and scooping up a few herself. We would love to know more about her job, and whether it’s the real world or other Mattel worlds she communicates with. If the movie had delved a little deeper into her, she’d probably be very high in girl power, but her appearance was a little too brief to measure.
9. Physicist Barbie
Sex Education‘s Emma Mackey plays Physicist Barbie in Barbie and is one of Barbie’s (Margot Robbie) best friends. She can be spotted a few times throughout the movie, but what really catches our attention is that she won a Nobel Prize on top of being a physicist. That’s wildly impressive, and the fact that she has a Nobel Prize and the protagonist of Oppenheimer does not is just too perfect and wins her extra girl power points.
8. Judge Barbie
Ana Cruz Kayne appears in Barbie as Judge Barbie. Of course, she’s not just any judge, but a Supreme Court Justice. That’s no easy feat to pull off. Plus, she still makes time for friends and picks fashion styles that give a nod to her Asian and Jewish heritage. Between her impressive career and the celebration of her heritage, we’re getting pretty high girl-power vibes from Kayne.
7. Writer Barbie
Alexandra Shipp appears in Barbie as Writer Barbie, a celebrated author in Barbieland, and another Nobel Prize winner. The publishing industry is notoriously difficult to navigate, so seeing Writer Barbie jump over those hurdles and become an author is pretty impressive. Also, she can be spotted in one of the film’s beach scenes, typing away on her laptop in her cute beach outfit. The fact that she’s hauling her laptop with her everywhere to work on her writing shows us she’s always on the grind, too, which points to some high girl power.
6. Dr. Barbie
Hari Nef appears in Barbie as Dr. Barbie and boasts some serious time management skills as she works a demanding job but still has time for girl nights and outings with the other Barbies. She also has the funniest reaction to Barbie’s flat feet with her fake vomiting, and one can just imagine that she has the funniest bedside manner. Between being a doctor, an impressive time manager, and having a sense of humor, Dr. Barbie has some pretty high girl power levels.
5. Journalist Barbie
Ritu Arya appears very briefly in Barbie as Journalist Barbie. She is spotted being awarded a Pulitzer Prize for her work and later reporting on some important presidential business. When it’s her turn to ask President Barbie (Issa Rae) anything she wants, she asks, “How come you’re so amazing?” She’s a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, and she uses her job to hype other women up?! That’s the kind of girl power we love to see.
4. Lawyer Barbie
Sharon Rooney appears in Barbie as Lawyer Barbie and is seen a few times hanging out with the Barbies at the beach and for girls’ night. Not only does she also seem to have great time management, but she doesn’t let the stresses of her job get to her. She steals every scene she’s in with her confidence and bubbly personality. Whether she’s being a lawyer, stealing the spotlight, or getting serious on the dance floor, Lawyer Barbie is just killing it at life and glowing with girl power.
3. President Barbie
Issa Rae is President Barbie in Barbie, and we’re so here for it. She puts the United States to shame for never having a female President when she’s over here being so competent and effective at leading all of Barbieland. President Barbie also ensures all her fellow female Barbies are heard and are complimented regularly. However, the best thing about President Barbie is her feistiness. She delivers the best line of the film when the Kens confront the Barbies over turning their mojo dojo casa houses back into dreamhouses, and she says, “That’s because they’re dreamhouses, motherf**ker!” Then, she keeps the blows coming by letting them know Barbieland is fully restored and, no, the Kens can’t be Supreme Court Justices. Fierce, feisty, accomplished, and always looking out for her fellow ladies, President Barbie is practically the definition of girl power.
2. Barbie
Margot Robbie stars as the main Barbie (also known as Stereotypical Barbie) in Barbie. While she doesn’t have an illustrious career, she still boasts most of the other Barbie’s best qualities. She’s brave and gutsy, has a strong empathy for others, and values her independence and her female connections. Additionally, she grows tremendously throughout Barbie and eventually makes a lot of sacrifices to acknowledge that there’s more to life than being perfect and pretty. By the end of Barbie, she is totally saturated in girl power, and the joy and pride she takes in being a woman is infectious.
1. Weird Barbie
Kate McKinnon stars in Barbie as Weird Barbie, and she’s just as delightful as we anticipated she would be. She’s not concerned about being pretty or perfect after a rough play session left her with an uneven haircut, marker on her face, and her legs in perpetual splits. Weird Barbie just accepts herself wholly and completely and doesn’t care in the slightest that the other Barbies call her Weird Barbie behind her back and to her face. Additionally, she’s filled with wisdom, kindness, and compassion. She’s always willing to help out a fellow Barbie, whether it’s THE Barbie or one of the discontinued Barbies. With her wisdom, confidence, self-assuredness, and kindness, Weird Barbie’s girl power levels are off the charts.
Honorable Mentions: Teen Talk Barbie, Proust Barbie, and Barbie Video Girl
In Barbie, we also get a few cameos from other intriguing Barbies that are a little too brief to judge their girl power by. Marisa Abela appears in a non-speaking role as Teen Talk Barbie, one of the discontinued Barbies hanging out with Weird Barbie. Perhaps, she doesn’t speak in protest of the voice box Mattel gave her, which oddly included the phrase, “Math class is tough.” Lucy Boynton also appears in a non-speaking role as Proust Barbie, a Barbie seemingly inspired by French novelist Marcel Proust, which was invented solely for Barbie as Mattel never made a Proust Barbie. Lastly, Mette Narrative appears briefly as Barbie Video Girl, a Barbie with a video camera on her back that was discontinued due to sparking problems with the FBI. We didn’t see enough of these Barbies, but if Barbie 2 happens, maybe we’ll get to see some more displays of girl power.
(featured image: Warner Bros.)
