America Ferrera has revealed that she had no interest in playing a Barbie doll in the Barbie movie.
The Ugly Betty actress plays a human woman, Gloria, who works at Mattel and spends all day and every day thinking about Barbie dolls, in Greta Gerwig's upcoming film.
Despite the star-studded cast who portray various incarnations of Barbie and Ken including Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, Ferrera shared that she wouldn’t have swapped her role out to have daily parties in the dreamhouse.
Related: Barbie star Michael Cera admits being "desperate" for movie role
In an exclusive interview with Digital Spy, Ferrera explained: "I didn't want to be one of the Barbies, that wouldn't have been as compelling to me.
"To me, the message of this movie is that there is no one standard of beauty, there's no one right way to be beautiful, one right way to be smart, one right way to be even Barbie. We can embrace ourselves uniquely and celebrate that.
What to Read Next
"I think everyone's best version of themselves is the Barbie that they are. My Barbie would just be America Barbie, me on my best day."
Equally, Ferrera's character delivers one of the best speeches in the movie, which she admits was another perk of the role.
Related: Barbie's Greta Gerwig didn't want to ignore doll's controversial legacy
She reflected: "When I read the monologue in the script, I was very moved by it and it felt like the truth, it really hit.
"I was excited to get to give it, and Greta and I spent months talking about it and preparing for it.
"I had a blast doing it. She gave me so much freedom to explore and try it a bunch of different ways and I loved it."
Barbie is released in cinemas on July 21.
Best Entertainment and Tech Deals
Coronation Street X Joanie - Gilroy Retro Newton And Ridley Sweatshirt
Jess is a freelance writer and editor with a passion for over-analysing everyone’s favourite movies and TV shows. As an English graduate from the University of York with an MA in Creative Writing, Jess worked as a magazine editor before turning freelance. Since then, Jess has written for outlets such as GQ, The Guardian, Inverse, Huff Post, Stylist, and Insider. She specialises in the representation of mental health, grief, and women in film. She’s also a major Marvel nerd and is writing a YA fantasy novel. LinkedIn
Mireia (she/her) has been working as a movie and TV journalist for over eight years. Based in the UK, she is a former deputy movies editor at Digital Spy, and previously worked for the Spanish magazine Fotogramas. Mireia's work has been published in other outlets such as Esquire and Elle in Spain, and WeLoveCinema and GamesRadar+ in the UK. She is also a published author, having written the essay Biblioteca Studio Ghibli: Nicky, la aprendiz de bruja about Hayao Miyazaki's Kiki's Delivery Service.
During her years as a freelance journalist and film critic, Mireia has covered festivals around the world and has interviewed high-profile talents such as Kristen Stewart, Ryan Gosling, Jake Gyllenhaal and many more. She's also taken part in juries such as the FIPRESCI jury at Venice Film Festival and the short film jury at Kingston International Film Festival in London. LinkedIn
