Warner Bros.’ plans for a Barbie sequel have reportedly stalled while it negotiates new agreements with Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling and director/co-writer Greta Gerwig. The studio must secure terms by December or the rights will revert to Mattel, making the talks crucial to continuing one of its biggest recent film successes.

Negotiations have lasted months, with proposed profit-sharing linked to box-office targets. The New York Times reported that Warner Bros. Discovery chief David Zaslav rejected an offer as too generous, though the studio disputed this and said representatives declined a May offer without making a counterproposal; Gerwig and co-writer Noah Baumbach have reportedly been developing a sequel idea. The 2023 film earned $1.5 billion worldwide, received eight Oscar nominations and won best original song.