Barbie Star Margot Robbie takes the cover story of Vogue Australia Magazine‘s August 2023 edition lensed by fashion photographer Mario Sorrenti. In charge of styling was Christine Centenera, with set design from Philipp Haemmerle, and production by Hest Inc. and Charlotte Rose. Beauty is work of hair stylist Shay Ashual, makeup artist Pati Dubroff, and manicurist Honey. For the story Margot is wearing selected pieces from top brands such as Balenciaga, Bulgari, Chanel, Paco Rabanne, Cartier, Amina Muaddi, Louis Vuitton, and Gucci.
This feels different. Comic book films, there’s definitely hype… But there’s something about Barbie that is a version of hype that I have not experienced before. It’s like everyone had this thing inside them that’s just bursting to get out and now they have the permission to let it all out and they’re exploding with it! It’s crazy…
Well, I also remember loving you (Greta Gerwig) from afar and then meeting you and being absolutely besotted with you because you instantly reminded me of so many of my friends. But up until that point, having watched Lady Bird and having watched the other films you had acted in and that you had developed with Noah [Baumbach, Gerwig’s partner and the co-writer of Barbie], I was like, ‘Oh, she’s queen of the indie scene and I’m just like a Colgate toothpaste model. She’s going to be so bored talking to me, but I really do take film seriously and I hope that comes across!’ But as soon as we sat down I was like, ‘Oh she’s so smart, but she doesn’t make other people around her feel dumb. She’s so interesting and funny and charming and just welcoming.’ You draw people in and you have a very unique kind of charisma, I find. A very endearing, delightful charisma. I loved you immediately. I was like, ‘I wanna be around her all the time and I really, really wanna work with her.’ But it was a couple of years before we actually got to work together. I’m glad it was this.
I do want to direct. Talking to Greta Gerwig about that has been the most motivating and helpful thing. To me, directing is a privilege and not a right and when I hear people just flippantly be like, ‘Yeah, sure I’m going to direct something,’ I’m kinda like, that’s a pretty sacred position and I hope you’ve earned the right to do that. In the sense that, they don’t have to have gone to film school or grown up around the industry or anything like that, but just love film, care about film. For so long, I was like, that’s such a sacred, coveted position, how dare I even dream to do it. – Margot Robbie
Barbie Movie directed by Greta Gerwig, starring Margot Robbie, Ariana Greenblatt, Kingsley Ben-Adir, and Ryan Gosling is in cinemas now.
Photography © Mario Sorrenti for Vogue Australia, read more at vogue.com.au
