Skip to main content
  • TotalFilm
  • Edge
  • Newsarama
  • Retrogamer
GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+
US EditionUS CA EditionCanada UK EditionUK AU EditionAustralia
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Features
  • More
    • PS5
    • Xbox Series X
    • Nintendo Switch
    • Nintendo Switch 2
    • PC
    • Platforms
    • Tabletop Gaming
    • Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Newsletters
    • About us
    • Features
Trending
  • Best Netflix Movies
  • Movie Release Dates
  • Best movies on Disney Plus
  • Best Netflix Shows
  1. Entertainment
  2. Movies
  3. Comedy Movies
  4. Barbie

Greta Gerwig tried to put a 'fart opera' into Barbie and we're so glad she didn't

News
By Bradley Russell published 28 July 2023

"I thought it was really funny. And that was not the consensus"

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Simu Liu, Margot Robbie, and Ryan Gosling in Barbie
(Image credit: Warner Bros.)
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Pinterest
  • Flipboard
  • Email
Share this article
Join the conversation
Follow us
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Get the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Bringing all the latest movie news, features, and reviews to your inbox


By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

You are now subscribed

Your newsletter sign-up was successful


An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
Subscribe to our newsletter

Barbie is consistently hilarious, but it might not have been the case if Greta Gerwig snuck in a joke that she thought was “really funny” – and no one else agreed.

Speaking to IndieWire, the director revealed early test screenings for the smash hit included a "fart opera" halfway through.

"We’ve always tried to get in a proper fart joke and we’ve never done it. We had like a fart opera in the middle. I thought it was really funny. And that was not the consensus," Gerwig said.

The film’s editor Nick Houy joked, "It was in the wrong place, too. We need to work it into a more significant narrative moment next time."

Not to dismiss fart jokes entirely – not all of them go down like wet farts with audiences, after all – but we’re just not really feeling the Kenergy with this one. For a movie that deals in a surprising amount of existentialism and dread, a "fart opera" doesn’t quite fit the tone. We’ll stick with a soundtrack that includes the likes of Dua Lipa, Lizzo, and Ryan Gosling stealing the show on ‘Push.’

Maybe it was for the best. Barbie has already grossed over $500m inside its first week, with the likes of Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling also receiving Oscars shouts from an adoring public.

Mattel has reacted in turn by revealing plans for multiple new movies, including Hot Wheels, Polly Pocket, and UNO.

Sign up for the Total Film Newsletter

Bringing all the latest movie news, features, and reviews to your inbox

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

For more on Barbie, check out our guide to Barbie Easter eggs, as well as a snippet from the Total Film interview with Greta Gerwig.

Bradley Russell
Bradley Russell
Social Links Navigation
Senior Entertainment Writer

I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.

Latest in Comedy Movies
Glen Powell as Becket in How to Make a Killing
How to Make a Killing is Glen Powell's latest mid-budget movie, and I hope he never stops making them
 
 
Community
Community movie got "very close" to filming, but one star's schedule caused a delay
 
 
Coyote Vs ACME
Coyote vs. Acme star felt "white hot anger" at the Looney Tunes live-action movie being shelved
 
 
Ghostface waggling a knife while on a subway car in the trailer for Scary Movie 6
Scary Movie 6 trailer takes a stab at modern horror – and none of your favorites are safe
 
 
Shorty (Marlon Wayans) streaming in Scary Movie 6
Scary Movie 6 may skewer Gen Z and play the hits, but it's not nostalgia bait
 
 
Ghostface in a parody of The Substance in Scary Movie 6
Scary Movie 6 "joke scientist" Marlon Wayans is taking a different approach to the horror spoof's humor
 
 
Latest in News
Pickmon
Pokemon fan artist alleges new Palworld clone Pickmon "stole one of my designs"
 
 
Mortal Kombat movie
Mortal Kombat 2 star joins in with Street Fighter movie beef after Game Awards dig because he "loves a good rivalry"
 
 
Mackenyu as Zoro in One Piece season 2
One Piece season 2 actor Mackenyu says he learned Roronoa Zoro's 15-minute 1 vs 100 fight in just 6 hours
 
 
Fujino and Kyomoto eating in Look Back
Live-action adaptation of Chainsaw Man creator's Look Back will escape Japanese cinemas and come to the west
 
 
Luigi and Mario slot cars on a racetrack
I never played with Scalextric as a kid, so I'm making up for it with this Mario Kart set
 
 
Cropped Helldivers 2 art from the official 'Save Cyberstan' poster.
Helldivers 2 devs "underinvested" in the game's engine, Arrowhead CEO admits, who pledges "things can/will get better"
 
 
LATEST ARTICLES
  1. Virtual Boy for Switch 2 sitting on coffee table with TV in backdrop displaying Wario Land gameplay.
    1
    I respect the Virtual Boy as a collectable Switch 2 gadget, but it’s not exactly a retro console remake
  2. 2
    Bizarre Lineage codes (March 2026) for free Stat Point Essence, Rare Chests, and more
  3. 3
    The Thrustmaster T248R is making me question where a sim racing wheel with no direct drive and no modular wheelbase fits in the market in 2026
  4. 4
    These Mario Day-inspired Switch 2 accessories will power up your console more than a super star
  5. 5
    Pokemon fan artist alleges new Palworld clone Pickmon "stole one of my designs," saying "they didn't even try to change something and make it a bit less obvious"

GamesRadar+ is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google
  • Terms and conditions
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Accessibility statement
  • Careers
  • About us
  • Advertise with us
  • Review guidelines
  • Write for us
  • Accessibility Statement

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...