Barbie Is Now A Massive Hit On Netflix
Usually, movies based on a popular brand are only made to promote that brand. Barbie bucked this trend by creating an unexpectedly subversive film — more akin to The Lego Movie than The Super Mario Bros. Movie. However, that hasn’t stopped the movie from being an effective brand ambassador, as FlixPatrol reports that the animated series Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse is trending on Netflix.
It’s very easy to pin the newfound success of Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse on the popularity of the new movie. Before now, the 2012 animated series has never ranked on Netflix since FlixPatrol began tracking streaming services in 2020. However, on July 19, 2023 — just one day before Barbie‘s Thursday preview, Life in the Dreamhouse began appearing on worldwide charts.
The 2012 animated series demonstrates that 2023’s Barbie was not the first time that Mattel experimented with presenting their iconic doll in an unusual way.
It has remained popular since then, peaking as the seventh most-popular show worldwide on July 26.
The 2012 animated series demonstrates that 2023’s Barbie was not the first time that Mattel experimented with presenting their iconic doll in an unusual way. The show very literally portrays its characters as sentient dolls, who live in plasticized Malibu, California. It mostly centers around a giant mansion loosely based on the classic Barbie Dreamhouse playset.
The series’ humor often revolves around slapstick comedy, the absurd characterization of Barbie and her friends, and widespread references to the fact that the characters are literal dolls. It also works as a parody of reality shows such as Big Brother, The Amazing Race, and Jersey Shore, with characters often giving confessionals to the camera.
Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse Began as YouTube Shorts
Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse originated as a series of three-to-four-minute shorts that aired on YouTube. It ran for seven seasons, from 2012 through 2015, with three 24-minute specials released over the course of its run — two of which premiered on Nickelodeon, with the third premiering on Netflix.
These unofficial YouTube versions serve as an important archive of the series, since the Netflix version of Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse changed the format. Rather than allowing viewers to watch each short individually, Netflix combined them into nine 24-minute “best of” episodes that are sorted by topic, rather than release date. The three specials are also included in the Netflix series.
The reason that only Life in the Dreamhouse regained popularity most likely has to do with its self-referential meta humor, which mirrors the new Barbie film.
Following the conclusion of Life in the Dreamhouse, Netflix released Barbie Dreamhouse Adventures, which is often viewed as a follow-up series, in 2018. It’s arguable, however, that Barbie Dreamhouse Adventures wasn’t intended as a follow-up to the original series of shorts.
It ditched the idea of portraying the characters as living plastic dolls, instead treating them as entirely human. It also has many more episodes that take place outside of Malibu, California.
In fact, Dreamhouse Adventures was originally meant to be part of the Barbie: Dreamtopia franchise, which aired on the web and television from 2016 through 2021. That franchise involved Barbie and her sister Chelsea exploring a make-believe land called Dreamtopia.
The reason that only Life in the Dreamhouse regained popularity most likely has to do with its self-referential meta humor, which mirrors the new Barbie film. Margot Robbie may have one our hearts over with her portrayal of Barbie in Greta Gerwig’s new film, but fans of the new movie should take a peak at Life in the Dreamhouse, to see where some of the inspirations might’ve come from.
