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Just six very important Barbie-related things we learnt from Margot Robbie's Vogue interview.

Margot Robbie has appeared on the cover of the Vogue US Summer Issue ahead of the release of her new Barbie movie.

And dang, these photos are everything. 

A series of stunning, Barbie-like images of the Australian star, wearing retro-style attire and looking impossibly gorgeous, have gone viral – and the shoot is, of course, accompanied by an in-depth interview.

Over the course of the chat, during which Robbie forces Vogue writer Abby Aguirre to roller-skate with her on the Venice boardwalk, the Australian actor reveals details about her life growing up in Queensland, how the Barbie project got off the ground, and what it was like behind the scenes of 2023's weirdest and most wildly anticipated movie.

Here's everything we learnt. 

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1. The Barbie movie was a long time in the making. 

Before Robbie ever signed onto this iteration of a Barbie film, there were several attempts to make a movie about the iconic Mattel doll and, at various points, big names like Amy Schumer and Anne Hathaway were attached to Barbie projects. 

But in 2018, Robbie conducted a meeting with the CEO of Mattel, Ynon Kreiz, to make the case for why her production company should take it on. Robbie runs LuckyChap, which she founded in 2014 alongside her husband, Tom Ackerley, and her friend, Josey McNamara. The production company already has hit projects like Birds of Prey and Promising Young Woman under its belt, and Barbie is looking to be yet another winner for the trio.

Listen to The Spill discuss why the release of Barbie and Oppenheimer on the same weekend is so controversial below. Article continues after podcast. 

After securing the rights from Mattel, Robbie started talks with Greta Gerwig (and eventually her husband, Noah Baumbach) to take on writing and directing Barbie.

2. Robbie didn't think of taking on the role of Barbie for a long time.

She told Vogue, "It wasn't that I ever wanted to play Barbie, or dreamt of being Barbie, or anything like that.

"This is going to sound stupid, but I really didn't even think about playing Barbie until years into developing the project."

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3. There is an original (and secret) song on the movie's soundtrack. 

At one point in the interview, Aguirre describes the movie's opening sequence, including the "Kubrick spoof" seen at the beginning of the movie trailer, and then, what is described as a "mad fantasy of gorgeousness" by the film's set designer.

But a key detail here is when Aguirre writes, "Barbie wakes up in her Dreamhouse and embarks on the Perfect Day, accompanied by an original song that serves as soundtrack. (I am not allowed to say who sings it.)"

However, it's likely that the song she's referring to is the track 'Dance the Night' that was teased by Dua Lipa on her Instagram earlier this week (Lipa actually makes a cameo in the Barbie film, too).

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4. Robbie and Gerwig were actually gunning for somebody else to play Barbie. 

The Vogue article explains that Robbie and Gerwig were looking to cast an actor with "Barbie energy" that Aguirre describes as "a certain ineffable combination of beauty and exuberance". 

The two landed on Gal Gadot as the perfect expression of Barbie but the actor, who has featured in blockbuster films like Wonder Woman and the Fast & Furious franchise, wasn't available to take on the role.

Robbie says that she would have been perfect. 

"Gal Gadot is so impossibly beautiful, but you don't hate her for being that beautiful, because she's so genuinely sincere, and she's so enthusiastically kind, that it's almost dorky."

5. Robbie gifted Ryan Gosling 'Ken' presents every day to get into character.

In his brief appearances in the interview, Ryan Gosling (who plays Barbie's eternal love interest, Ken – if they are, in fact, capable of love) says that he was confused by the premise of his character.

Gosling says that he was told the essence of Ken is "just beach" and to help him embody that feeling, Robbie would leave him presents every day. 

"She left a pink present with a pink bow, from Barbie to Ken, every day while we were filming," he tells Vogue

"They were all beach-related, like puka shells, or a sign that says 'Pray for surf.'"

Watch the new Barbie trailer below. Article continues after video.

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Video via Warner Bros. 

6. Margot Robbie is great at roller-skating but she cannot cook.

Taking the Vogue writer for a skate on the Venice boardwalk, Robbie explained that she doesn't like having brakes on her skates after she takinfg up the activity for her role in I, Tonya, the critically acclaimed film in which she plays the infamous competitive ice skater, Tonya Harding.

As the pair walked past a skate dance park, Robbie said that she met another skater on the set of Babylon who taught her some moves.

"On Babylon, one of the background extras, she's like a really cool Instagram skater, and we were talking about skating. I was like, 'Do you want to go on the weekend and teach me some tricks?' And she was like, 'Yeah, sure'. So we went and she was kind of teaching me how to dance on my skates."

Robbie sounds like she has an impressive skill set – but then, she also details in the interview how she has set not one, but three separate Christmas hams alight accidentally. So... cooking's not her strong suit.

Image: Getty. 

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