Skydance Co-CEO Ynon Kreiz On When ‘Barbie 2’ Will Be A Go: “Too Early To Talk About That.” However, There’s Hope

At this afternoon’s presser for the newly-merged Skydance, we asked when Barbie 2 would be a go project.

“Too early to talk about that,” was the official response from former Mattel CEO Ynon Kriez, newly-named Skydance co-CEO. Kriez was involved in the first Warner Bros. movie based on Mattel’s famed blonde doll. That Warner Bros. pic is the highest grossing movie in the studio’s history, with $1.44B at the global box office.

There was high drama before Paramount married Warner Bros as to whether the sequel was bound for a green light. Word was that former WBD CEO David Zaslav balked at paying increased wads of money for the CAA juggernaut repped Barbie team of stars Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, director Greta Gerwig, and her spouse and co-writer Noah Baumbach. In the meantime, a first look deal was made with Baumbach but at Warners specialty label, Clockwork (which were told at the time didn’t encompass Barbie 2). There was a ticking time clock as the film rights would revert back to Mattel at the end of the year, and the toymaker would have to start from scratch with a frosh project, and frosh talent.

Cooler heads are now prevailing, and it is day one at the new Skydance. Kriez is now on the other side of the equation, and one of several priorities for Skydance Motion Picture Group chairs Dana Goldberg and Josh Greenstein is getting into the weeds that is Barbie 2. That among the 36 Warner Bros dated theatrical releases they’re inheriting and more. The duo need to figure out which state of development myriads projects are in, read, the Baz Luhrmann untitled film is not shooting yet, and reportedly in pre-production. That was another audacious big auteur swing from the previous Warners motion picture administration. A new draft is in the wings for Weapons prequel, Gladys, but it’s in need of a director if it’s going to make its September 2028 release date.

As far as Barbie 2 goes, stay tuned. Those heels aren’t necessarily made for walking. If there’s a takeaway from the new Ellison merger it’s to honor the legacies of each studios. Not erase them.