Get ready for a Mattel Cinematic Universe. Thanks to the record-breaking success of Barbie, the toy company is looking to produce several more movies based its products, including a Polly Pocket film from writer-director Lena Dunham starring Lily Collins.
Mattel Films producer Robbie Brenner confirmed the news to Variety, revealing that a script for the project has already been submitted (though declining to share any plot details). “First of all, they are two of my favorite ladies ever,” Brenner said of Dunham (of Girls fame) and Collins (Emily in Paris). “It’s been an amazing collaboration. Lena is so collaborative and rolls up her sleeves and really likes to roll around in notes and listen. She’s incredible. Lily is so smart and so specific and so productorial. It’s just been an incredible collaboration, so we are thrilled about it. Hopefully, we’ll be making that at some point in the future.”
Though less storied and controversial than Barbie, Polly Pocket has been a successful Mattel line since the 1980s, offering kids miniature rubber wardrobes that, much like Weird Barbie, were perfect for roughhousing (or even chewing, we admit). The brand has since spun off into several animated films, a web series, and an animated TV show.
Polly Pocket isn’t the only toy Mattel hopes to capitalize on in a film industry obsessed with recognizable IP. Daniel Kaluuya is set to helm a Barney movie, while J.J. Abrams promises to turn Hot Wheels into an “emotional and grounded and gritty” movie. As for a Barbie sequel? With its box office numbers, Mattel is likely ready to sign off on a new film, but Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie might not be attached if it comes to fruition.
