Did you ever think A24 and Barney would be mentioned in the same sentence? Yeah, me neither, but we’re now living in a world where the independent entertainment company is making a Barney movie with Mattel and Get Out’s Daniel Kaluuya through his 59% Productions banner. The latest update on this upcoming A24 movie is that The Bear’s Ayo Edebiri has come aboard to work on Barney, and I already know which role I’d like for her to play in the loving purple dinosaur’s upcoming movie.
Let’s get the official information out of the way first: Edebiri has been tapped to write the Barney screenplay, and talks are also underway for her to star in it. A24’s Barney and Kaluuya’s involvement in it were announced back in October 2019, and a year later, he teased that he was interested to explore what happens when the song from the original TV show “I Love You” isn’t true. Mattel Films’ Robbie Brenner stated (via EW) that the Barney movie will deliver a “completely new approach” to the title character that “will surprise audiences and subvert expectations,” and Mattel CEO Anon Kreiz described this approach as “fun, entertaining and culturally oriented. It will not be an odd movie.”
The original Barney & Friends TV series from 1992 to 2010 and featured numerous child actors frolicking about with Barney, Baby Bop and BJ, including Demi Lovato and Selina Gomez. Assuming everything works out with Ayo Edebiri acting in the project after writing it, that’s the kind of role I want her to play: someone who spent time with Barney as a kid and had a cheery outlook on life back then, but then grew up and became jaded by the challenges of adulthood.
Even though plot details are nonexistent for Barney, I have to imagine that if the story will involve the dinosaur coming back into the life of the main protagonist after years away. It’s similar to what was done with Winnie the Pooh and the other 100 Acre Wood inhabitants in 2018’s Christopher Robin. Edebiri would do a great job playing someone who’s been beaten down by life and could benefit from Barney’s positivity. At the same time though, she’d be evolved enough to know that one cannot simply ignore the unpleasantness that comes with everyday life that’s just not present in Barney’s world.
Some of the best A24 movies are R-rated, but like Barbie, another Mattel property film adaptation, I suspect Barney will be envisioned through a PG-13 lens. That leaves enough wiggle room to explore this subject matter in a deep way, but doesn’t make it inaccessible to younger moviegoers. Then it’s just a matter of knowing how weird Barney is going to get, because let’s face it, you can’t not have weirdness in an A24 movie. I’m confident that Ayo Edebiri’s script will find the perfect balance, and hopefully we’ll learn soon if she’ll also be lending her talents on camera for Barney.
