lifestyle

The new Barbie ad has people talking for all the wrong reasons.

There’s a new Barbie fan boy in town.

Mattel, the toy maker that produces Barbie, is supposedly making history, breaking gender stereotypes by introducing a boy into one of their Barbie ads for the first time.

Unfortunately, not everyone is convinced.

Watch the ad here. Post continues below.

Video by Moschino Official

While some have applauded the ad which includes a young fashion-conscious boy sporting a faux-hawk, others think it just introduces another stereotype – that boys who play with dolls are probably destined to be gay.

The commercial is for the Moschino Barbie which is already sold out and was created by Mattel in partnership with the Italian fashion designer.

Although Mattel is getting all the kudos, the commercial was actually created by Moschino creative director Jeremy Scott, who made no secret that the boy was modelled on a younger version of him.

“Like every girl and gay boy, I loved Barbie,” said Scott.

Many saw the introduction as a step forward.

ADVERTISEMENT

But others were less impressed.

ADVERTISEMENT

and

They have a point: if Mattel was really keen to bash down stereotypes, wouldn’t they have included a young boy who didn’t look like he was going to grow up to be a fashion designer but was heading out after playing with Barbie to bash some trucks together in the backyard?

Progress is progress. Let’s not rain on Mattel’s parade completely. But maybe the next step in progress can come quickly, in recognising that no matter what the future sexuality of a child is, all toys are created equal.

What do you think of the new Barbie ad? 

Tags: video
00:00 / ???