“Barbie” earned $155 million at the box office during its opening weekend and critics called it “spontaneous and fun.” Movie-goers, made up of mostly women, dressed in all pink to celebrate the occasion. But when there’s a group of women excited about and praising something, rest assured that there are conservatives lurking around the corner, ready to trash it.
Ben Shapiro, a conservative commentator, posted a 43-minute long YouTube video on Saturday, complaining “Barbie” divides men and women, calling it “flaming garbage” and “woke.” He also lit a Barbie and Ken doll on fire to protest the movie.
Ginger Gaetz, the wife of Congressman Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), wrote on Instagram that “Barbie” shows Ken with a “disappointingly low T” and that the movie gives an “unfair treatment of pregnant Barbie Midge.”
“The Barbie I grew up with was a representation of limitless possibilities, embracing diverse careers and feminine empowerment,” Ginger Gaetz wrote. “The 2023 Barbie movie, unfortunately, neglects to address any notion or faith or family, and tries to normalize the idea that men and women can’t collaborate positively (yuck).”
Ted Cruz said that a world map shown in the movie was used by Hollywood to act “as a mouthpiece for the Chinese communists.” According to Reuters, Vietnam banned “Barbie” because the map includes “the so-called nine-dash line” that is used on Chinese maps “to illustrate China’s claims over vast areas of the South China Sea, including swaths of what Vietnam considers its continental shelf, where it has awarded oil concessions.” Warner Bros said in a statement that the map was simply a childlike drawing and “not intended to make any type of statement.”
Charlie Kirk, a conservative radio talk show host, criticized the casting of Hari Nef as one of the Barbies in the film because she is a trans actor.
Kirk said “Barbie” was “trans propaganda that is in this hyper-feminine, ultra pink propaganda thing, but it’s really been taken over by the trans mafia.” He also said that the “Barbie” trailer was “the most disgusting thing” he’d ever seen.