If you have seen Margot Robbie star as the henchwoman Harley Quinn for DC’s supervillain character Joker, or in the Oscar-nominated The Wolf of Wall Street, you know how versatile of a character she is. Not just acting, but Robbie has also produced several films like I, Tonya, and Netflix’s Maid with partner and co-producer Tom Ackerley. And of course, the duo, along with two others, took the gigantic wheels of production for the upcoming blockbuster Barbie, too.

Being on the wagon from the beginning, Robbie got candid and shared how she pitched the idea of Barbie by giving a Steven Spielberg-esque example for it. 

Margot Robbie talks about convincing the directors

Having co-written the story of Barbie, Robbie talked about how she pitched the idea to directors. In an interview with Collider, the 33-year-old actress talked about how she pitched the movie to Greta Gerwig in the green light meeting. In her pitch, she talked about how far some studios have come when they had a visionary director paired with a big idea. The actress used examples of “dinosaurs and Spielberg” to convey how people back then did not gauge how it would turn out to be one of the greatest movies ever. And then she added, “And now you’ve got Barbie and Greta Gerwig” and that it would definitely make “a billion dollars.”  

And surely, Robbie got the coming-of-age movie director to get on board for this romantic comedy. Adding on to the Gerwig appreciation, Ryan Gosling, who also attended the interview, talked about the director’s inclusive personality. Her effortless fusion of drama and comedy made the whole experience feel more relatable. 

The Frances Ha and Lady Bird director was definitely their first choice. But the role of Barbie was still in talks. 

Was Barbie’s role still in talks?

The Barbie actress also shared how she landed the role. Though Margot Robbie wanted to star in it, the actress-cum-producer’s main priority was getting the director on board. She did not want the director to feel “pressured” into casting Robbie for the role. Being upfront about it, Robbie insisted that Gerwig not feel the slightest bit of pressure. She said, “I’ve got skin in the game as a producer. I don’t have skin in the game as an actor, so be free with that choice.”

The director had only one person in mind, and that was the Australian actress. She quickly thwarted all doubts in Robbie’s mind and wrote the role for her. And there Robbie gave us a quick snippet of how the idea of this Oscar-worthy cast and film met their director to turn it into a blockbuster.  

Are you impressed with Robbie’s convincing skills? Share with us in the comments.