Barbie already had stacked cameos, including a mermaid John Cena to legendary costumer Ann Roth, but the film almost included a cameo from none other than Ridley Scott.
Yes, the director behind hits like Alien and the upcoming Napoleon was set to feature in the film, with jokes about one of his most famous works at the center of his cameo.
Writer and director Greta Gerwig spoke at a recent appearance at the Writers Guild of America West headquarters (via Variety) and mentioned the jokes about deprogramming and, specifically, The Snyder Cut was almost switched out for a joke about Blade Runner and its infamous Director’s Cut.
Gerwig reveals her original plan: “One of the Barbies says to Ken, ‘Oh my god, I never would have realized that Deckard was a replicant.’ Then, when she gets unbrainwashed, there’s a version where she said, ‘I liked the voiceover. I needed it to help me understand what was happening. Nobody’s following this.'”
The Barbie co-writer and Gerwig’s partner Noah Baumbach added to the sentiment, saying Ridley Scott almost shot a cameo for the film. He adds, “It wasn’t making fun of him. We loved him as we love all of our references.” Gerwig echoes the sentiment,” Every reference we had was out of love. We love Sly Stallone. Everything was a lighters-up tribute.”
Barbie is heading toward the Academy Awards now after becoming the highest-grossing film of 2023 with ease.
After being expelled from the utopian Barbie Land for being a less-than-perfect doll, Barbie and Ken go on a journey of self-discovery to the real world.
Directed by Greta Gerwig (Lady Bird, Little Women), the Barbie movie sees Robbie and Gosling’s iconic toy couple joined by a bumper cast that includes Will Ferrell (Step Brothers), Simu Liu (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings), Kate McKinnon (Bombshell), America Ferrera (Superstore), Ariana Greenblatt (Love and Monsters), Emma Mackey (Sex Education), Alexandra Shipp (tick, tick… BOOM!), Issa Rae (The Lovebirds), Michael Cera (Arrested Development), Hari Nef (And Just Like That…), Kingsley Ben-Adir (One Night in Miami), Rhea Perlman (Cheers), Ncuti Gatwa (Sex Education), Emerald Fennell (The Crown), Sharon Rooney (The Electrical Life of Louis Wain), Scott Evans (Grace and Frankie), Ana Cruz Kayne (Little Women), Connor Swindells (Sex Education), Ritu Arya (The Umbrella Academy), Jamie Demetriou (Fleabag) and Helen Mirren (Shazam! Fury of the Gods).
