Is the 'Barbie' Movie the End of Barbiecore?

When the Barbie doll first debuted in 1959, she wasn’t wearing pink. Decked out in a chevron swimsuit, her color scheme was more paired-down black and white — with pops of color thanks to her cherry-red lipstick and gold hoops, of course — than in-your-face hot pink. It wasn’t until decades later that the doll's signature color began to take hold. 

“Barbie embraced the full-on pink with the 1977 Superstar Barbie,” says Kim Culmone, Senior Vice President and Global Head of Design for Barbie and Fashion Dolls at Mattel. She cites the 1977 doll’s pink satin gown and matching sparkly boa as the start of what would become Barbie’s visual calling card. “The brand then further solidified Barbie’s pink persona as Barbie began to be sold in packaging,” she adds. It wasn't until 2008 that Mattel officially honed in on Barbie’s signature color, partnering with Pantone to name and claim her exact shade, Pantone 21C.

This year is shaping up to be another big milestone for Barbie. Thanks to the Greta Gerwig-helmed movie, she’s not just a doll but a brand, fashion icon, and an inescapable cultural force in 2023. You can see Barbie in theaters, dress like Barbie in your brightest magenta, and even live like Barbie in a perfect pink palace if you’re so inclined. We all have Barbie fever this summer, and the only prescription is more pink.

On the fashion front, pink has been trending for a few seasons. “I give a lot of credit to the FW 2022 Valentino show when Pierpaolo Piccioli debuted an all-pink collection on the runway,” says Rickie De Sole, Women’s Fashion Director at Nordstrom. “On the heels of Y2K nostalgia and, of course, Barbiecore, the color has had enduring popularity over the last year.” 

Valentino Pink, the Y2K revival, and the first viral photos of Margot Robbie from Barbie (rollerblading in Santa Monica, no less) perfectly set the scene for Barbiecore to capture the fashion world’s imagination. By the summer of 2022, countless celebrities had shown up in Piccioli’s genius collection on red carpets, and brands began to think about how they could cash in on the Barbie movie hype. Alongside TikTok discourse around reclaiming hyper-femininity, bimbo culture, and “coquette” style, Barbie (along with her pink obsession) was ripe for a comeback. 

As the movie premiere loomed larger, so did its influence, and this summer took pink into the stratosphere. We were treated to Barbie collab after Barbie collab, with shoes, purses, and clothes debuting in every pink on the planet. The Barbie movie’s epic press tour featured a cascade of viral Barbie-inspired looks from Margot Robbie, including archival pieces worn by ‘90s supermodels, references to some of the doll’s most popular iterations, and even a Kenning moment or two from Ryan Gosling. Barbiecore had reached cultural saturation, culminating in a bright pink, red carpet movie premiere on July 9.

It's official: We've reached peak Barbiecore. But as people head to theaters this weekend dressed in their pinkest pinks, it’s hard not to wonder if the trend has almost run its course on the fashion front. In fact, between the Oppenheimer memes and Margot Robbie returning to Barbie’s ‘50s roots (no pink!) for the U.S. premiere, it’s clear that Barbiecore’s future is different than the hot pink domination that defined summer 2022. 

“Pink is a timeless hue, but we will see an evolution of the color,” explains De Sole about how fashion trends evolve. Inevitably, the Barbie pink infatuation will fade, as does every fashion obsession, and another shade will take its place. “Red is the new pink! We’re seeing a shift to red tones for fall," she adds, explaining that "red was the pop color on the runways in a sea of black and paired-back style.” Considering Margot Robbie recently wore a ruby red corset dress to the Barbie premiere after-party, this prediction feels especially prescient.

Laurie Pressman, VP at the Pantone Color Institute, agrees that color trends will inevitably move on. But she’s not so quick to discount the shade’s enduring power. “Barbie holds a special place in our culture. There are generations of women who played with Barbie as a child, and while today they may be parents or grandparents, it is a color that takes them back to their childhood, creating that feeling of comfort we get from nostalgia,” she explains. “This type of emotional attachment typically means the popularity of a color will not disappear quickly, and while it may not be as popular as it is today, it will still remain in the hearts of many women as it rings a bell.”

What's more, the past few months are proof that Barbiecore is more than just a color trend. One could argue it's a whole movement. It's part of a larger cultural push to embrace femininity — and, therefore, unlikely to dissipate any time soon.

“As you know, it’s not called Pinkcore. It’s Barbiecore,” says Culmone. To her, Barbiecore is more about channeling the joyful nostalgia and adventurous spirit of Barbie (whether or not your fashion choices follow suit). “We are thrilled that fans are embracing this empowering moment of hyper-femininity.”

So the answer to the question is, yes, pink might loosen its grip on the fashion world in the months ahead. But, the feminine urge to dress up like Barbie is very real. Whether or not pink is part of your wardrobe come fall, this summer proves our collective fascination with Barbie, hot pink, and Greta Gerwig’s fictional Barbie world will live on.