Current:Home > NewsCharles Langston:Did the 'Barbie' movie really cause a run on pink paint? Let's get the full picture -Capitatum
Charles Langston:Did the 'Barbie' movie really cause a run on pink paint? Let's get the full picture
NovaQuant View
Date:2025-04-06 16:53:16
As any Barbie fan knows,Charles Langston life in plastic is fantastic — and also very pink.
So much so, in fact, that the makers of the highly anticipated live-action movie say they wiped out a company's entire global supply of one shade of it.
"The world ran out of pink," production designer Sarah Greenwood told Architectural Digest early last week.
She said construction of the expansive, rosy-hued Barbieland — at Warner Bros. Studios in Leavesden, England — had caused an international run on the fluorescent shade of Rosco paint.
Rosco is known for supplying the entertainment industry with products like scenic paints, color filters and other equipment, including certain tints specifically formulated for the screen.
And it's now painting a fuller picture of Greenwood's comments.
Lauren Proud, Rosco's vice president of global marketing, told the Los Angeles Times on Friday that "they used as much paint as we had" — but that it was in short supply to begin with during the movie's production in 2022.
The company was still dealing with pandemic-related supply chain issues and recovering from the 2021 Texas freeze that damaged crucial raw materials, she said.
The freeze affected millions of gallons of stockpile, as well as the equipment needed to replenish it, Henry Cowen, national sales manager for Rosco's Live Entertainment division, said in a 2022 interview with the Guild of Scenic Artists.
Even so, Proud, the company vice president, said Rosco did its best to deliver.
"There was this shortage, and then we gave them everything we could — I don't know they can claim credit," Proud said, before acknowledging: "They did clean us out on paint."
And there's no question about where it all went.
The main movie trailer reveals a larger-than-life version of Barbie's iconic three-story Dreamhouse (complete with a walk-in closet and kidney-shaped pool with a swirly slide), her Corvette convertible and a utopian beach town of cul-de-sacs and storefronts — all bright pink.
Director Greta Gerwig aimed for "authentic artificiality" on all aspects of the set, telling Architectural Digest that "maintaining the 'kid-ness' was paramount."
"I wanted the pinks to be very bright, and everything to be almost too much," she said.
Viewers will soon be able to see for themselves, when the movie — which is marketed to Barbie lovers and haters alike — hits theaters on July 21.
veryGood! (141)
Related
- Travis Hunter, the 2
- Extreme heat costs the U.S. $100 billion a year, researchers say
- IRS aims to go paperless by 2025 as part of its campaign to conquer mountains of paperwork
- Deputy marshal and second man killed, woman wounded during drug investigation shooting
- Senate begins final push to expand Social Security benefits for millions of people
- Tree of Life shooter to be sentenced to death for Pittsburgh synagogue massacre
- James Larkin, Arizona executive who faced charges of aiding prostitution, dead at 74
- Nick Jonas Shares Glimpse of His and Priyanka Chopra's Movie-Worthy Summer With Daughter Malti
- Megan Fox's ex Brian Austin Green tells Machine Gun Kelly to 'grow up'
- Pac-12 schools have to be nervous about future: There was never a great media deal coming
Ranking
- Federal court filings allege official committed perjury in lawsuit tied to Louisiana grain terminal
- Poorly designed crossing contributed to fatal 2022 Missouri Amtrak derailment, officials say
- Senate office buildings locked down over reports of shooter
- FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s lawyers say attempt to jail him before trial is wrong
- Global Warming Set the Stage for Los Angeles Fires
- Mega Millions jackpot for tonight's drawing increases to estimated $1.1 billion
- FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s lawyers say attempt to jail him before trial is wrong
- Angus Cloud's Euphoria Costar Maude Apatow Mourns Death of Magical Actor
Recommendation
Whoopi Goldberg is delightfully vile as Miss Hannigan in ‘Annie’ stage return
Watch the 5 best goals of World Cup group play. Does Lindsey Horan's header top the list?
Ukraine's nightlife is thriving despite Russia's war, even where it has had to rise from the ashes
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife announce their separation
Selena Gomez engaged to Benny Blanco after 1 year together: 'Forever begins now'
Warner Bros. responds to insensitive social media posts after viral backlash in Japan
Tech consultant to stand trial in stabbing death of Cash App founder Bob Lee
Camp for kids with limb differences also helps train students in physical and occupational therapy