Current:Home > reviewsBill Maher Ken-not with Barbie fighting the patriarchy: 'This movie is so 2000-LATE' -FundGuru
Bill Maher Ken-not with Barbie fighting the patriarchy: 'This movie is so 2000-LATE'
View
Date:2025-04-18 07:48:18
Bill Maher doesn't think Greta Gerwig's representation of life in plastic is all that fantastic.
The "Real Time" host shared his thoughts Monday about "Barbie" on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Though the film starring Margot Robbie as the titular character has surpassed $1 billion at the box office since its July 21 release date, Maher wasn't impressed.
"I was hoping it wouldn't be preachy, man-hating, and a #ZombieLie - alas, it was all three," Maher began. He described a "zombie lie" as "something that never was true, but certain people refuse to stop saying it (tax cuts for the rich increase revenues, e.g.); OR something that USED to be true but no longer is, but certain people pretend it's still true. 'Barbie' is this kind of #ZombieLie."
'Barbie' review:Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling dazzle in hilariously heady toy story
Maher continued, taking issue with portrayal of Mattel's board in the film as "12 white men! The Patriarchy!" he wrote. "Except there's a Mattel board in real life, and it's 7 men and 5 women." Mattel's website currently identifies 11 Board of Directors, consisting of six men and five women.
"OK, not perfect even-steven," Maher went on, "but not the way the board IN THE MOVIE - which takes place in 2023 - is portrayed. And not really any longer deserving of the word 'patriarchy.' Yes, there was one, and remnants of it remain - but this movie is so 2000-LATE."
"I know, I know, 'How could I know about the patriarchy, I AM a man!'" Maher wrote, preemptively going on the defense. "That argument is so old and so silly. Of course, none of us can know exactly what others go through life, but I can see the world around me, and I can read data.
"The real Mattel board is a pretty close mirror of the country, where 45% of the 449 board seats filled last year in Fortune 500 companies were women," Maher added. "Barbie is fun, I enjoyed it - but it IS a #ZombieLie," Maher wrote in conclusion. "Let's live in the year we're living in! Hi Ken!!!"
Though, it appears Maher might be quoting from older data. According to this year's Heidrick & Struggles' Board Monitor US report, there were 414 Fortune 500 board appointments made in 2022 (a decrease from 449 in 2021). And only 40% of the 2022 openings were filled by women, per the report, down from 45% in 2021. Furthermore, the company's analysis of CEOs released in 2022 found that women made up 7% of CEOs around the world. Last year women in America "earned an average of 82% of what men earned," per Pew Research Center findings that looked at "median hourly earnings of both full- and part-time workers."
'Barbie' ending:Greta Gerwig talks 'emotional' final line, creator Ruth Handler (Spoilers!)
veryGood! (897)
Related
- Are Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp down? Meta says most issues resolved after outages
- Yankees pitcher Jimmy Cordero suspended for rest of 2023 season for violating MLB's domestic violence policy
- Q&A: Is Elizabeth Kolbert’s New Book a Hopeful Look at the Promise of Technology, or a Cautionary Tale?
- Lily-Rose Depp and The Weeknd React to Chloe Fineman's NSFW The Idol Spoof
- Civic engagement nonprofits say democracy needs support in between big elections. Do funders agree?
- Warming Trends: The ‘Cranky Uncle’ Game, Good News About Bowheads and Steps to a Speedier Energy Transition
- Jellyfish-like creatures called Blue Buttons that spit out waste through their mouths are washing up on Texas beaches
- 1 person shot during Fourth of July fireworks at Camden, N.J. waterfront
- The Grammy nominee you need to hear: Esperanza Spalding
- Kelis and Bill Murray Are Sparking Romance Rumors and the Internet Is Totally Shaken Up
Ranking
- Behind on your annual reading goal? Books under 200 pages to read before 2024 ends
- The Resistance: In the President’s Relentless War on Climate Science, They Fought Back
- Is Natural Gas Really Helping the U.S. Cut Emissions?
- Rachel Bilson’s Vibrator Confession Will Have You Buzzing
- Meta donates $1 million to Trump’s inauguration fund
- Trump Budget Calls for Slashing Clean Energy Spending, Again
- Amazon Shoppers Swear by This Affordable Travel Size Hair Straightener With 4,600+ Five-Star Reviews
- After being accused of inappropriate conduct with minors, YouTube creator Colleen Ballinger played a ukulele in her apology video. The backlash continued.
Recommendation
A Mississippi company is sentenced for mislabeling cheap seafood as premium local fish
Meta's Twitter killer app Threads is here – and you can get a cheat code to download it
Keep Up With North West's First-Ever Acting Role in Paw Patrol Trailer
Climate Change Ravaged the West With Heat and Drought Last Year; Many Fear 2021 Will Be Worse
DeepSeek: Did a little known Chinese startup cause a 'Sputnik moment' for AI?
Many Scientists Now Say Global Warming Could Stop Relatively Quickly After Emissions Go to Zero
Warming Trends: A Catastrophe for Monarchs, ‘Science Moms’ and Greta’s Cheeky Farewell to Trump
Pentagon to tighten oversight of handling classified information in wake of leaks