‘Black Barbie’ Documentary Exploring a Crucial Moment in Mattel History Premieres June 19

Love her or hate her, almost everyone has a Barbie story. Even if they don’t have a story, there’s a story as to why they don’t have a story. A brand-new Barbie documentary is coming to Netflix from Shondaland, and it tells a story you may not have heard before. 

Directed by Lagueria Davis, Black Barbie explores the impact of three Black women at Mattel responsible for the Black Barbie debut in 1980: Beulah Mae Mitchell, Kitty Black Perkins, and Stacey McBride Irby. Through insider interviews and charismatic retellings of what went down at Mattel in the days leading up to Black Barbie’s debut, the documentary examines the importance of true representation — and how dolls aren’t just dolls but childhood symbols that can be crucial to identity formation and imagination. 

Lagueria Davis said in a statement, “Telling Black Barbie’s story has been such a personal journey, and it warms my heart to celebrate the legacy of my aunt Beulah Mae Mitchell, Kitty Black Perkins, and Stacey McBride Irby in our film. We couldn’t have asked for better collaborators than Shondaland and Netflix to bring this story to the world.” 

Black Barbie is brought to life by a stellar production team, including executive producers Shonda Rhimes and Betsy Beers for Shondaland, Grace Lay and Sumalee Montano for LinLay Productions, Camilla Hall for Lady & Bird Films, as well as Milan Chakraborty and Jyoti Sarda.

The film was first screened to critical acclaim as a work in progress at the 2023 SXSW Film Festival. The documentary premieres on Netflix on June 19.