"You Don't Own Me: How Mattel v. MGA Entertainment Exposed Barbie's Dark Side" follows two parallel stories: The first is that of Ruth Handler, the creator of Barbie, memorably played by Rhea Perlman in "Barbie." The second is the story of Carter Bryant, the creator of Bratz — who, not unlike America Ferrera's character, Gloria, in Greta Gerwig's blockbuster film, was actually a Mattel employee himself before everything went down.
As depicted in Orly Lobel's book, Bryant designed the Bratz as a sort of anti-establishment alternative to Barbie, intended for girls who might not be so into Handler's controversial, monolithic creation but still wanted appealing dolls of their own to play with. Lobel recounts how Bryant's decision to sell his original doll concept to MGA Entertainment while still employed by Mattel ultimately led to a lengthy legal war.
The "You Don't Own Me" series adaptation is also set to dive into that legal war, against the backdrop of "the cultural revolution that Barbie spawned, the subsequent backlash, and the cut-throat, high-stakes world of toys," positioning both Handler and Bryant as troubled visionaries. If the series does get produced and makes it all the way to screen, we'd be talking, of course, about a uniquely auspicious meeting of trends — namely, between Hollywood's growing interest in fact-based stories about famous brands and products (also including recent films like "Air," "Flamin' Hot," "BlackBerry," and "Tetris") and the ongoing Barbie cultural renaissance.
