‘Barbie’ Sequel Stalls as David Zaslav Won’t Approve Bigger Salaries for Ryan Gosling and Margot Robbie
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- David Zaslav has balked at granting Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling rich deals with profit participation on the 'Barbie' sequel, even though the first film grossed $1.4 billion and earned 8 Oscar nominations.
- Ryan Gosling is angling to raise his pay to $20 million for the sequel after earning a Best Supporting Actor nomination for his turn as Ken.
- Warner Bros. initially signed the 'Barbie' stars to one-movie deals — a rare move used to land Greta Gerwig as director — so renegotiation wasn't baked into the original contracts.
- Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach have an idea for a follow-up film but won't share the concept with the studio until the talent deals are locked, with a December deadline looming before the IP reverts to Mattel.
- Warner Bros. co-chairs Pam Abdy and Michael De Luca confirmed the studio has made more than half a dozen offers over three years, calling them among the biggest the studio has put forward, though talent reps declined the most recent offer without countering.
- If the December deadline passes without a deal, Mattel would have to redevelop the 'Barbie' IP from scratch — meaning a new filmmaker, new cast and new concept for Warner Bros.
Why it matters: Warner Bros. faces a December deadline to close deals or lose the 'Barbie' rights to Mattel entirely, despite the franchise having earned $1.4 billion at the box office and 8 Oscar nominations. The stalemate over Gosling's $20 million pay demand and profit participation could force the studio to walk away from a proven billion-dollar property rather than meet top-of-market talent terms.
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