Margot Robbie's 'Barbie' Payday: An Eye-Popping Number
The path to a second "Barbie" film has hit serious turbulence. Salary talks are reportedly stuck, with Warner Bros. said to have made more than six offers to the core team — and had each one rejected. It is a familiar Hollywood dilemma: after a runaway hit, the talent expects a bigger slice of what comes next.
Margot Robbie, who starred in and produced the original, earned roughly $50 million for her work. Alongside Robbie, key figures including Ryan Gosling, Greta Gerwig, and Noah Baumbach are pushing for significantly larger payouts. Gosling, expected to reprise his role as Ken, is asking for $20 million. Other members of the creative team are also seeking higher fees and a larger share of future earnings.
What the Core Team Is Demanding
- Ryan Gosling, set to return as Ken, wants $20 million.
- Other collaborators have also insisted on higher pay and a bigger cut of future revenue.
Gerwig, who took home tens of millions on the first movie, and Baumbach reportedly have a sequel idea in mind, but they will not share it with the studio until contract terms are settled. The original "Barbie" took in about $1.4 billion globally. Robbie has previously said she cannot imagine a follow-up because the team never planned a trilogy.
This deadlock underscores how large talent fees can complicate even the most commercially promising sequels. What happens in the next round of negotiations may shape not only the fate of "Barbie 2" but also Warner Bros.' broader strategy for adaptations and franchise extensions.