Greta Gerwig, director of the life adaptation of “Barbie,” has finally addressed Jo Koy‘s controversial comments about her hit movie.
The comedian sparked media outrage over his unpopular jokes at the 2024 Golden Globes, earning the wrath of celebrities and fans. While many labeled his thoughts about Gerwig’s film as “sexist” and “demeaning,” the filmmaker reacted interestingly to Koy’s jabs.
Greta Gerwig Says Jo Koy’s Comments About Barbie’s Origins Are ‘Not Wrong’
As this year’s host of the Golden Globes, Koy opened the award show by comparing “Barbie” to its premiere counterpart, saying: “Oppenheimer is based on a 721-page Pulitzer Prize-winning book about the Manhattan Project, and Barbie is on a plastic doll with big b—ies.”
In his monologue, he continued dissing the movie, claiming: “The key moment in Barbie is when she goes from perfect beauty to bad breath, cellulite, and flat feet. Or what casting directors call character actor!”
While Koy’s comments sent fans raging on social media, Gerwig responded calmly to his jokes. Instead of slamming the comedian for insulting her movie, she credited him for being right about Barbie’s origins. In her words:
“Well, he’s not wrong. 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.”
Gerwig noted in her recent appearance on “BBC Radio 4’s Today” that the doll-inspired movie became successful thanks to that blank-slate mentality. Making a movie about the plastic doll gave her and her husband/writing partner, Noah Baumbach, the opportunity to create their iconic character.
“Barbie, by her very construction, has no character, no story. She’s there to be projected upon,” the director explained. Gerwig’s calm response to Koy’s upsetting comments may be linked to her movie’s massive success.
“Barbie” received the most nominations at the Golden Globes and won the award for Cinematic and Box Office Achievement. Additionally, the movie amassed billions of dollars in theaters, making it the first film from a solo female director to gross over $1 billion worldwide.
