Also new as Barbie: Viola Davis, Helen Mirren, Maira Gomez, Lila Avilés and Nicole Fujita.
To mark Mattel’s 65th anniversary, the brand used International Women’s Day as a reference to select some “global storytellers” and launch its own Barbie dolls based on their role models. Eight women from eight countries were selected for this project – Viola Davis, Shania Twain, Helen Mirren, Kylie Minogue, Maira Gomez, Lila Avilés, Nicole Fujita and Enissa Amani.
To encourage others to “tell their own story”
Krista Berger, senior vice president of Barbie explained about the celebrity selection: “For the past 65 years, Barbie has used her global platform to encourage girls to dream big, discover their limitless potential and tell their own stories to shape their future. As we celebrate this milestone birthday, we honor the more than six decades of stories that Barbie helped write and the doll that continues to give everyone the opportunity to dream – and dream big.”
Every single woman was chosen for this project for a specific reason. With her company JuVee Productions, Viola Davis has long been giving a voice to those who otherwise don’t get a big stage. Among other things, her work focuses on inclusion and combating hunger among children in the USA. In choosing Shania Twain, the toy maker emphasized that she is “one of the most celebrated trailblazers in music and fashion who has broken down the barriers for women in country music.” The singer was also asked about her Barbie in an interview and was visibly enthusiastic.
Watch the interview with Shania Twain here:
“It’s something I can add to the list of my favorite achievements”
Helen Mirren is also one of the chosen ones. Mattel said she was “one of the best-known and most respected actresses in the world and an advocate for self-expression, aging and fashion.” She was also visibly emotional when reporting on the project on Sky News. “It’s very special and something I can add to my list of favorite achievements – becoming a Dame of the British Empire, having an Oscar, having a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and having my own Barbie,” said she known.
Commenting on the selection of Kylie Minogue, Mattel wrote on the brand’s website: “Kylie Minogue’s illustrious career has firmly rooted her in the present, while at the same time shaping and celebrating much of our collective past.” She already presented the doll based on her on Instagram – in a partner look with her miniature version.
While the singer managed to have a significant impact on the music industry, Maira Gomez took her work to a different field. She comes from an indigenous community of the Tatuyo ethnic group in the Amazon region and wants to bring her people’s culture and traditions closer to her almost seven million followers on social media.
The doll manufacturers have also found a role model in the film industry – Lila Avilés. As a film producer, she has already won more than thirty international festival awards. Another Barbie was released based on the model of the Japanese model Nicole Fujita, who also works on TV and in fashion design. The last woman to join the ranks of the chosen ones, I am comedian Enissa Amani, who regularly uses her platform “to create and produce viral shows that deal with racism in Germany.”