Oscars Will Pass, But Barbie Legacy Is Here To Stay, Hellen Mirren Says

Summary

• Barbie hasn't been nominated for any major Oscars, despite every fan's expectations.
• Helen Mirren believes that the film's performance and success are the best awards possible.
• Barbie's stars wish Greta Gerwig had been properly recognized for her work on the film.

As the 96th Academy Awards draws near, people are getting more and more excited to see which 2023 premiere will win the most awards. And while some are rooting for Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer and other high-profile releases from last year, many people are upset that Greta Gerwig's hit comedy Barbie wasn't nominated in such major categories as Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actress.

So much so that there has been a lot of backlash from Barbie fans who say that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences snubbed Gerwig's film. The stars, however, have been pretty muted in their comments. Just recently, Helen Mirren, who served as the narrator in Barbie, commented on the film's lack of nominations in the major categories.

Oscars Don't Matter in the Long Run

When Barbie premiered in mid-July 2023, it was an instant hit, with many praising the film for its brave and amusing take on various social issues such as patriarchy, pressure on women and men, unjust social expectations, and the unbridled power of corporations.As a result, many people expected Greta Gerwig's film to sweep the Oscar nominations, which unfortunately didn't happen. But it seems that the film's resonance with audiences and its impact on the industry are more valuable to the people who worked on Barbie.

'You can't get upset about things like that, honestly,' Helen Mirren commented on Barbie not receiving Best Film, Best Director, and Best Actress Oscar nominations. 'What is fantastic is that Barbie was the highest-grossing film that Warner Brothers has ever had in their lives.'

In fact, Greta Gerwig's Barbie earned a whopping $1.44 billion at the box office and became the highest-grossing film of 2023, meaning millions of viewers saw it in theaters around the world. Meanwhile, most people can't remember which movie won Best Picture at last year's Oscars.

Recognition for Greta Gerwig

Throughout her filmmaking career, Greta Gerwig has come close to winning an Oscar several times with her acclaimed films Lady Bird and Little Women. In the case of Barbie, however, she wasn't nominated for Best Director, which the film's cast finds absurd.

Margot Robbie, who also didn't receive an Oscar nomination for her starring role in Barbie, isn't upset about it, but she thinks it's unfair that Gerwig was snubbed at this year's Oscars.

'What she did is a once-in-a-career, once-in-a-lifetime thing, what she pulled off, it really is,' the actress said in an interview.

In turn, Helen Mirren, who is philosophical about the lack of nominations for Barbie, would also have liked to see Greta Gerwig duly recognized for her brave and unorthodox work. And in that sense, the audience's reception of the film is the best award they could hope for.

Sources: Entertainment Tonight, Deadline.