The Pink Era! How ‘Barbie’ Became a Global Phenomenon

“Barbie” took the world by — perfectly pink — storm!

The movie’s influence was everywhere from fashion to gaming accessories to sporting events… Fans could even rent a Malibu Barbie dreamhouse! More than 100 brands and retailers did Barbie collabs, and we’re still in the pink era today.

Not to mention, Barbie’s power of pink made for some serious green at the box office — to the tune of $1.43 billion.

“Extra’s” Melvin Robert spoke with Variety magazine’s Angelique Jackson to break down the brilliant marketing that made Barbie a global phenomenon.

Melvin pointed out that stores had entire pink sections to help fans pick the perfect outfit to wear to the movie. Angelique replied, “So many brands wanted to get into Barbie nostalgia.”

She added the blockbuster was able to reach a multi-generation audience across all ages, gender and sexuality and everyone felt connected to the film.

Jackson explained how the movie made its mark on the small screen too when it was featured on “The Bachelor,” Progressive commercials, and with an HGTV dreamhouse.

Angelique said, “All of that is because of what Warner Bros. describes as the fusion of the network where the film arm and also TV and all of the brands they reach can all work together.”

The movie dominated on social media as well, and Jackson shared, “It has hundreds of thousands of social media impressions across platforms and that was in some ways by design by Warner Bros., but some was organic because of the fans.”

She said, “You look at something just like the ‘Hi Barbie, Hi Ken.’ They dropped that sound on TikTok, and to date there are 239,000 videos made with just that sound.”

Melvin called “Barbie” the gift that keeps on giving and a true “cultural phenomenon.”