During Jo Koy's opening monologue at the 81st Golden Globes Awards, the comedian made a couple of jokes about Barbie and Oppenheimer. One of the remarks focused on Barbie's physical features, stating she's "the first doll that was mass-produced with breasts." The other joke targeted the film's climax, describing it as the moment Barbie "goes from perfect beauty to bad breath and cellulite and flat feet."
However, the joke did not seem to have landed well, as many in the audience seemed to be discomforted, as many clips showed reactions of Barbie's actor Margot Robbie smiling uncomfortably while her co-actor Ryan Gosling playing Ken did not even smile while other celebrities including Selena Gomez, Taylor Swift, Emma Stone, and others were seen with uncontrollable sour expressions on Koy's comment on stage.
Greta Gerwig Reacts To Jo Koy's Barbie Comment At Golden Globes
Koy's opening monologue from the awards received intense backlash from many for being a reductive, and sexist "joke". As everyone has been discussing the upsetting comment on the event, the director of the film, Greta Gerwig reacted with a stoic smile and a little nod at the night. Gerwig finally opened up putting a full stop to the ongoing discussion.
Gerwig addressed the comment in a recent interview with BBC Radio. Her response was nuanced and two-folded as she acknowledged the factual accuracy of the first joke and sarcastically admitted, "Well he's not wrong" and bluntly said, "She’s the first doll that was mass-produced with breasts, so he was right on. And you know, I think that so much of the project of the movie was unlikely because it is about a plastic doll." This suggests she didn't take offence to the factual aspect of the comment.
However, Gerwig quickly moved beyond the superficiality of Koy's joke, shifting the focus to the film's deeper themes as she emphasized the film's exploration of Barbie's lack of inherent character as a "blank-slate mentality" and the audience's role in "projecting upon their aspirations onto her". This highlighted the film's deeper message about societal expectations and female identity.
Gerwig, in her true element, acknowledged the outer noise and instead decided to focus on the value her film brought to the world. The filmmaker maintaining positivity around her film's success is a reply enough to those mocking the film.
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Why Greta Gerwig Said Jo Koy's Barbie Comment 'Wasn't Wrong'
After Jo Koy's polarising comment on the film Barbie on stage at the Golden Globes 2024 sparked backlash, the director of the film finally addressed the "joke."
Greta Gerwig Reacts To Jo Koy's Barbie Comment At Golden Globes (Image: YouTube).
During Jo Koy's opening monologue at the 81st Golden Globes Awards, the comedian made a couple of jokes about Barbie and Oppenheimer. One of the remarks focused on Barbie's physical features, stating she's "the first doll that was mass-produced with breasts." The other joke targeted the film's climax, describing it as the moment Barbie "goes from perfect beauty to bad breath and cellulite and flat feet."
However, the joke did not seem to have landed well, as many in the audience seemed to be discomforted, as many clips showed reactions of Barbie's actor Margot Robbie smiling uncomfortably while her co-actor Ryan Gosling playing Ken did not even smile while other celebrities including Selena Gomez, Taylor Swift, Emma Stone, and others were seen with uncontrollable sour expressions on Koy's comment on stage.
Greta Gerwig Reacts To Jo Koy's Barbie Comment At Golden Globes
Koy's opening monologue from the awards received intense backlash from many for being a reductive, and sexist "joke". As everyone has been discussing the upsetting comment on the event, the director of the film, Greta Gerwig reacted with a stoic smile and a little nod at the night. Gerwig finally opened up putting a full stop to the ongoing discussion.
Gerwig addressed the comment in a recent interview with BBC Radio. Her response was nuanced and two-folded as she acknowledged the factual accuracy of the first joke and sarcastically admitted, "Well he's not wrong" and bluntly said, "She’s the first doll that was mass-produced with breasts, so he was right on. And you know, I think that so much of the project of the movie was unlikely because it is about a plastic doll." This suggests she didn't take offence to the factual aspect of the comment.
However, Gerwig quickly moved beyond the superficiality of Koy's joke, shifting the focus to the film's deeper themes as she emphasized the film's exploration of Barbie's lack of inherent character as a "blank-slate mentality" and the audience's role in "projecting upon their aspirations onto her". This highlighted the film's deeper message about societal expectations and female identity.
Gerwig, in her true element, acknowledged the outer noise and instead decided to focus on the value her film brought to the world. The filmmaker maintaining positivity around her film's success is a reply enough to those mocking the film.