# List of Barbie films
Barbie films are a series of animated and live-action movies starring the Barbie fashion doll, produced by Mattel beginning with the straight-to-video *Barbie in the Nutcracker* in 2001 and continuing at a rate of about two films per year.[1](https://www.thepopverse.com/barbie-movies-movie-in-order-watch-mattel-chronological-release-animated-cartoon-live-action) The series also includes related television series and web content, and it culminated in 2023 with [Greta Gerwig](https://www.edgepedia.org/greta-gerwig)'s live-action *[Barbie](https://www.edgepedia.org/barbie-film)*, one of the highest-grossing films ever made.[2](https://apnews.com/article/933312ca505200e8b73808592f89ca68)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| First film | *Barbie in the Nutcracker* (2001), released straight-to-video[1](https://www.thepopverse.com/barbie-movies-movie-in-order-watch-mattel-chronological-release-animated-cartoon-live-action) |
| Output rate | Mattel has produced an average of about two films per year since 2001[1](https://www.thepopverse.com/barbie-movies-movie-in-order-watch-mattel-chronological-release-animated-cartoon-live-action) |
| Early era | Computer-animated fairy-tale retellings, including *Barbie as Rapunzel* (2002) and *Barbie of Swan Lake* (2003)[3](https://barbie.fandom.com/wiki/Movies) |
| First original story | 2005, with a story by Elise Allen and Diane Duane[1](https://www.thepopverse.com/barbie-movies-movie-in-order-watch-mattel-chronological-release-animated-cartoon-live-action) |
| Production | Mainframe Studios produced the majority of the series; Netflix is the current exclusive global streaming home for new animated features[4](https://shapes.inc/fandom/barbie-animated-film-series/filmography) |
| Theatrical entries | *Barbie* (2023, live action) grossed over $1.4 billion worldwide[2](https://apnews.com/article/933312ca505200e8b73808592f89ca68); a first theatrical animated film from Illumination is in development[5](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/animation-movies/super-mario-bros-studio-is-making-the-first-theatrical-barbie-animated-movie/) |
| 25th anniversary | Mattel planned an all-new *Barbie in the Nutcracker* animated special premiering globally in 2026[6](https://corporate.mattel.com/news/barbie-commemorates-25-years-of-barbie-in-the-nutcracker-with-an-all-new-animated-special-premiering-globally-in-2026) |
## The animated direct-to-video series
Declining sales for Barbie dolls in the early twenty-first century prompted Mattel to remake the character in a line of direct-to-video film adaptations that reworked classic literature by placing Barbie at the center.[7](https://academic.oup.com/adaptation/article/17/3/493/7749053) The first four films retold classic fairy tales and ballets: *Barbie in the Nutcracker* (2001), *Barbie as Rapunzel* (2002), *Barbie of Swan Lake* (2003), and *Barbie as The Princess and the Pauper* (2004).[3](https://barbie.fandom.com/wiki/Movies)
**Adaptations and original stories.** Film scholarship describes the early line as adaptations of works such as *Barbie in the Nutcracker* (2001), *[Barbie as the Princess and the Pauper](https://www.edgepedia.org/barbie-as-the-princess-and-the-pauper)* (2004), and *Barbie in A Christmas Carol* (2009). The series portrayed Barbie as a capable, emotionally grown-up woman who could live without a man yet might welcome one's companionship, so long as he did not get in the way of her own goals and life.[7](https://academic.oup.com/adaptation/article/17/3/493/7749053) In the *Nutcracker*, Barbie appears as an actress in a "produced film," telling a story to her younger sister Kelly, a framing the sequels repeated.[4](https://shapes.inc/fandom/barbie-animated-film-series/filmography) • [8](https://www.iris.unimore.it/retrieve/6bec9939-83e6-4f54-afab-02dca2391370/PhD%20Thesis%20-%20Female-active%20-%20Galizia%20Giulia%20UNIMORE.pdf) An original plot did not appear until 2005, when writers Elise Allen and [Diane Duane](https://www.edgepedia.org/diane-duane) produced a story Mattel liked enough to continue, creating the first continuing chronology in the series.[1](https://www.thepopverse.com/barbie-movies-movie-in-order-watch-mattel-chronological-release-animated-cartoon-live-action)
**Modern era.** Later entries expanded into contemporary and fantasy settings. *Barbie: Big City, Big Dreams* (2021) introduced Barbie "Brooklyn" Roberts as a co-lead, and *[Barbie: A Touch of Magic](https://www.edgepedia.org/barbie-a-touch-of-magic)* (2023) worked as a series-film hybrid expanding modern fantasy lore.[4](https://shapes.inc/fandom/barbie-animated-film-series/filmography) The films sit alongside spin-off series such as *[Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse](https://www.edgepedia.org/barbie-life-in-the-dreamhouse)* (2012–2015), *Barbie Dreamhouse Adventures* (2018–2020), and *[Barbie: It Takes Two](https://www.edgepedia.org/barbie-it-takes-two)* (2022).[9](https://ttabvue.uspto.gov/ttabvue/ttabvue-91299351-OPP-1.pdf)
In 2026, Mattel marked 25 years of the film series with an all-new *Barbie in the Nutcracker* animated special premiering globally, alongside a Mattel Press picture-book retelling, and announced re-releases of classic animated specials.[6](https://corporate.mattel.com/news/barbie-commemorates-25-years-of-barbie-in-the-nutcracker-with-an-all-new-animated-special-premiering-globally-in-2026)
## The 2023 live-action film
*Barbie* (2023), directed by Greta Gerwig and starring [Margot Robbie](https://www.edgepedia.org/margot-robbie), was the first live-action theatrical film starring the doll.[10](https://time.com/6289787/barbie-movie-history-mattel/) Mattel had considered a Barbie movie since 2009 but resisted for years, wary of the doll's criticized body standards and of fixing a blank-slate character to a single actor. When CEO Ynon Kreiz took over in 2018 he committed to a film as the first entry in a planned Mattel cinematic universe; Robbie signed on to star and produce in 2018, and Warner Bros. announced Gerwig and [Noah Baumbach](https://www.edgepedia.org/noah-baumbach) as screenwriters a year later. [Amy Schumer](https://www.edgepedia.org/amy-schumer) had been attached to a live-action version in 2016 and left that project.[10](https://time.com/6289787/barbie-movie-history-mattel/)
The film earned $337 million worldwide in its opening weekend, the biggest debut of 2023 and the largest box office result for a film directed by a woman at that time.[11](https://time.com/6294121/barbie-movie-popularity-impact/) It finished with more than $1.4 billion in worldwide ticket sales, the highest-grossing film of 2023, and received six Oscar nominations.[2](https://apnews.com/article/933312ca505200e8b73808592f89ca68) Critics gave it a Rotten Tomatoes score of 88 percent.[12](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/401217449_Digital_Perspectives_Global_Narratives_in_New_Media_Communication/fulltext/699f939c7247bc6473e43270/Digital-Perspectives-Global-Narratives-in-New-Media-Communication.pdf) Its marketing campaign ran alongside more than a hundred pink-themed brand partnerships.[13](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2023/jul/28/warner-bros-marketing-head-josh-goldstine-barbie-pink-movement)
## Related screen appearances and upcoming films
Beyond the main series, Barbie played prominent supporting roles in the animated blockbusters *Toy Story 2* (1999), *Toy Story 3* (2010), and *Toy Story 4* (2019).[9](https://ttabvue.uspto.gov/ttabvue/ttabvue-91299351-OPP-1.pdf) Following the 2023 film, Illumination and Mattel Studios finalized a deal to develop a new Barbie movie that would be the character's first theatrical animated feature, to be released by [Universal Pictures](https://www.edgepedia.org/universal-pictures); as of July 2025 it had no release date, director, or announced cast.[5](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/animation-movies/super-mario-bros-studio-is-making-the-first-theatrical-barbie-animated-movie/)
## References
1. [Barbie movies in order: how to watch all 44 of her animated adventures, Popverse](https://www.thepopverse.com/barbie-movies-movie-in-order-watch-mattel-chronological-release-animated-cartoon-live-action)
2. [Was 2023 a tipping point for movies? 'Barbie' success and Marvel struggles may signal a shift, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/933312ca505200e8b73808592f89ca68)
3. [Movies, Barbie Wiki (Fandom)](https://barbie.fandom.com/wiki/Movies)
4. [Barbie Animated Film Series Filmography, Shapes](https://shapes.inc/fandom/barbie-animated-film-series/filmography)
5. [Super Mario Bros. studio is making the first theatrical Barbie animated movie, GamesRadar+](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/animation-movies/super-mario-bros-studio-is-making-the-first-theatrical-barbie-animated-movie/)
6. [Barbie Commemorates 25 Years of "Barbie in the Nutcracker" with an All-New Animated Special Premiering Globally in 2026, Mattel](https://corporate.mattel.com/news/barbie-commemorates-25-years-of-barbie-in-the-nutcracker-with-an-all-new-animated-special-premiering-globally-in-2026)
7. [What Was I Made For? Greta Gerwig's Barbie (2023), Adaptation (Oxford Academic)](https://academic.oup.com/adaptation/article/17/3/493/7749053)
8. [PhD thesis, Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia](https://www.iris.unimore.it/retrieve/6bec9939-83e6-4f54-afab-02dca2391370/PhD%20Thesis%20-%20Female-active%20-%20Galizia%20Giulia%20UNIMORE.pdf)
9. [Mattel v. opposition filing, USPTO TTAB](https://ttabvue.uspto.gov/ttabvue/ttabvue-91299351-OPP-1.pdf)
10. [Why It Took 64 Years to Make a Barbie Movie, TIME](https://time.com/6289787/barbie-movie-history-mattel/)
11. [How Barbie Took Over the World, TIME](https://time.com/6294121/barbie-movie-popularity-impact/)
12. [Digital Perspectives: Global Narratives in New Media Communication, ResearchGate](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/401217449_Digital_Perspectives_Global_Narratives_in_New_Media_Communication/fulltext/699f939c7247bc6473e43270/Digital-Perspectives-Global-Narratives-in-New-Media-Communication.pdf)
13. [How did Barbie do it? Warner's head of marketing on creating a 'pink movement', The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2023/jul/28/warner-bros-marketing-head-josh-goldstine-barbie-pink-movement)
---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › National and regional cinemas by year › Thematic and subject film lists › Franchise and film-series survey lists*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license