Star Simu Liu Says ‘Barbie’ Puts Final Nail in the Coffin of the Idea of What Gender Is

Actor Simu Liu, who plays one of the many Kens in the upcoming Barbie movie, said the film will put the “final nail in the coffin of that very heteronormative idea of what gender is.”

Speaking with ScreenRant’s Joe Deckelmeier, Liu talked about growing up in a “society where traditional gender norms were pretty heavily enforced” and how he appreciates how the Barbie movie will be pushing those barriers.

“Colors became gendered, toys became gendered, there were all these rules that were imposed on us,” he said. “So Barbie was always like, ‘Oh that’s not my toy. That’s on the other toy’. And I’m so glad that this movie exists because I think it puts the final nail in the coffin of that very heteronormative idea of what gender is, and what is or is not gendered. How can you make a color gendered, you know?”

Liu talked about the fun of playing with certain colors like pink while working on the film and how great it felt to express himself “in all of the ways you feel like you want to, and not to feel like because something is attributed to a certain gender or a certain idea that you can’t also do that.”

“That’s I think what’s really struck me about being in this movie, what’s evolved in my understanding of Barbie and what it is, and what I hope that an audience will get from it when they watch the movie,” he said.

It should be noted that while the color pink has traditionally been associated with feminity, men have adopted the color as a matter of artistic or fashion expression for decades (if not, centuries) with virtually no pushback or controversy, or questioning from the broader society. From Aerosmith to Rod Stewart to Snoop Dogg to general men’s fashion, the color pink has never been female-exclusive despite it being a feminine symbol.

Liu further said that he appreciated how director Greta Gerwig allowed the movie to criticize Mattel and have a conversation about the many problems associated with Barbie.

“There are some really scathing critiques of the idea of Barbie, what Barbie has been or is. And also some really scathing critiques on Mattel as well, which I love,” he said.

“But I think it really speaks to just how much everyone on board believed in the vision and the voice of this movie, that they were like, “No, this conversation needs to happen and Mattel needs to be in on this conversation, and we need to be a part of it,’ because that’s the only way that we can move forward,” Liu concluded. “That’s the only way that we can get the audience on board with the story that we want to tell.”

Kate McKinnon, who also stars in Barbie, said that the movie will explore how “gender roles deny people half their humanity and how like we need to just like be ourselves and it’s a like a very powerful message.” Transgender actor Hari Neff, who plays Doctor Barbie in the film, said it will be a source of inspiration for trans people.

Paul Roland Bois joined Breitbart News in 2021. He also directed the award-winning feature film, EXEMPLUM, which can be viewed for FREE on YouTube or Tubi. A high-quality, ad-free stream can also be purchased on Google Play or Vimeo on Demand. Follow him on Twitter @prolandfilms or Instagram @prolandfilms.