'Barbie' success should prompt Hollywood to make 'more movies by and about women,' says Randall Park

Hollywood is jumping on the success of Greta Gerwig's musical comedy "Barbie," which has surpassed $1 billion at the box office, reports EW. But actor Randall Park believes that making more toy-based films is beside the point.

Mattel is reportedly gearing up for the film's sequel while also working to develop other properties for the big screen, including Polly Pocket, Hot Wheels and American Girl. "Barbie, as a brand, has many different iterations," Mattel CEO Ynon Kreiz told Variety last month. "In addition to the main Barbie figure, she has family, she has a lot of elements around in her universe. It's a very rich universe... It's a very broad and very elastic brand, in terms of opportunities. Successful movies lend themselves to more movies. Our ambition is to create film franchises."

However, some people believe that the point of the film is being missed. In a recent interview with Rolling Stone to promote his directorial venture "Shortcomings," Randall Park stated that he believes the "industry is taking the wrong lessons" from "Barbie's" popularity.

"'Barbie' is this massive blockbuster, and the idea is: Make more movies about toys! No—make more movies by and about women!" the 49-year-old said. The interviewer added, "The lesson here should be that you gave this brilliant independent woman filmmaker in Greta Gerwig the reins to a big blockbuster movie and had Margot Robbie star in and produce it." Park then exclaimed, "Exactly! Think like that. It’s Greta Gerwig!"

Speaking of the success of 2018's "Crazy Rich Asians" as a turning point, the Korean-American actor added he was "very conscious and in support of the importance" of that film. "It felt like the beginning of something," he said. "Of a shift in culture for Asian Americans, and I think it really spoke to the massive success of that movie. It wasn’t just Asians watching that movie — it was so many different people."

"From my perspective, in this industry, we had been told time and again that our stories wouldn’t connect with Middle America," the "Always Be My Maybe" star added. "They won’t understand it and won’t be able to identify with our stories. It proved that these stories are universal, ultimately and for everybody."

As for the "Barbie" fever, it looks like it is not going away anytime soon. The delightfully campy feminist film is filled with incredibly empowering gems and nuggets of wisdom. Director Greta Gerwig also spoke about the ending of the film recently. In an interview with USA Today, Gerwig emotionally opened up about the film and a crucial scene at the end of it, which features Margot Robbie's Barbie delivering an important line. Barbie makes her way to the receptionist's desk to deliver the final line of the film: "I am here to see my gynecologist."

Gerwig stated that she wanted to end the movie with a "mic drop" moment and the audience can bet that she delivered really well. "With this film, it was important for me that everything operated on at least two levels," Gerwig told the outlet. "I knew I wanted to end on a mic drop kind of joke, but I also find it very emotional. When I was a teenage girl, I remember growing up and being embarrassed about my body and just feeling ashamed in a way that I couldn't even describe. It felt like everything had to be hidden."

"And then to see Margot as Barbie, with this big old smile on her face, saying what she says at the end with such happiness and joy," Gerwig added. "I was like – if I can give girls that feeling of 'Barbie does it, too' – that’s both funny and emotional. There are so many things like that throughout the movie. It was always about looking for the levity and the heart."