Barbie marketing drives surge in actor’s star-power and demand for dolls

You'd have to be living under a rock to not be familiar with the new Barbie movie, released in cinemas on July 21. Featuring a star-studded cast and female empowering message, the release has seen phenomenal box office success already.

The Barbie movie had an estimated $150 million marketing budget so it’s no surprise the franchise has soared to such heights. With such exposure, what impact has this had on the actors in the movie and for the Barbie brand itself?

New data from freelance PR and marketing consultancy Search etc. has revealed just which Barbie actors have seen the most online interest in the past month, along with the Barbie dolls seeing a boost from the film's success.

The entire cast of Barbie has generated 58,000 online searches in the past month in the UK alone and there are 526,700 global searches for all cast members combined last month. Online searches for Barbie dolls have also seen a rise, increasing 96% from June to July.

Take a look at how much search interest each actor has seen below:

The release has also driven a surge in interest in the original dolls. From just June to July 2023 searches for Barbie dolls have increased 96%, rising from 174,000 to 341,000 searches.

The below shows the types of Barbie dolls seeing a boost in interest the past month in the UK:

Barbie is set to be one of (if not the) blockbuster of the year, breaking down the success of the film’s marketing Leanne Coppock from Search etc. said:

“Dua Lipa has overtaken Ryan Gosling in online searches since the film has launched, despite Gosling completing a global press tour and being the male face of the film. Whilst Gosling is still a prominent name attached to the project, Dua Lipa being involved in both the film and the soundtrack has led to a huge boost in her celebrity now Barbie has been released”.

“The entire project has been a masterclass in how to market a movie, with no expense spared and no marketing channel left ignored. From AI Barbie face filters to a real dream house available to rent in Miami, the campaign has created a fully immersive experience for fans to partake in. Movie-goers are dressing up in pink to attend screenings and posing in doll box props to further promote the film post-launch. This has led to director Greta Gerwig achieving success as the female director with the biggest film debut ever.”