Does any film set look more fun right now than Greta Gerwig’s Barbie movie? For weeks, we’ve been seeing images and videos flooding the internet of Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling donning double denim, driving bright pink cars, and rollerblading around Venice Beach in matching neon outfits – and that’s not even the half of it. Beyond those two – confirmed to be playing Barbie and Ken in the film – the stacked cast also includes the likes of America Ferrera, Simu Liu, Kate McKinnon, Michael Cera, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Issa Rae, new Doctor Who Ncuti Gatwa, and Alexandra Shipp, as well as Sex Education star Emma Mackey – who recently told Empire about the fun that’s been going on behind the scenes.
“Right in the beginning, we had a sleepover for the Barbies, which would involve playing games with Scott [Evans] and Ncuti [Gatwa],” Mackey says in the upcoming Avatar: The Way Of Water issue – hinting at the rumoured idea that there will be multiple different iterations of Barbie in the film. Among those activities? Table tennis. “I don’t play games usually, because I get so competitive and angry. But Scott and I were top of the game.” For Mackey, it’s been a joyful pivot from her other upcoming role, playing Emily Brontë in Frances O’Connor’s biopic Emily. “It’s great to do comedy, because Emily was a sad, dark drama,” she says. “Barbie is light and funny and silly and American and pink.”
And working with Gerwig – who’s currently two-for-two with her directorial features Lady Bird and Little Women, and has long been a favourite for her work as a performer and screenwriter – has certainly lived up to Mackey’s expectations. “She’s everything I could have dreamed of,” she says. “She’s so invested and precise, and so childishly delighted by what she’s doing. Scorsese said, ‘Never lose the amateur in you.’ I see Greta behind her monitor laughing, and she’ll reference something very niche and it will make total sense in that moment. Her mind is fizzing all the time. I love being around those kinds of people.” Life in plastic really does sound fantastic.
Read Empire’s full Emma Mackey interview in the upcoming Avatar: The Way Of Water issue, on sale Thursday 7 July and available to pre-order online here. Barbie comes to cinemas in summer 2023.