Mattel reveals Barbie’s new role model dolls in honour of Women’s History Month

Dolls have been unveiled in honour of Women’s History Month and Barbie’s birthday

Mattel has revealed Barbie’s new role model dolls in honour of Women’s History Month.

The iconic doll brand has announced that it will be adding a few new dolls to its Role Models collection to celebrate not only International Women’s Day on 8 March but Barbie’s 65th birthday on 9 March as well. Each of the dolls in the collection is based on real-life actors, athletes, artists, singers, and more from around the world, including producer Shonda Rhimes, YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki, singer Celia Cruz, skateboarder Sky Brown, and tennis star Naomi Osaka.

This year, one of the newest additions to the collection includes actor Viola Davis, a Julliard graduate and an EGOT winner after having earned an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony. The American actor is well-known for her star-making turns in films like The Help and Fences as well as TV shows like How To Get Away With Murder.

Davis isn’t the only actor among the new additions to the collection, with Mattel also adding a doll of celebrated British actor Dame Helen Mirren, who is widely known for her Oscar-winning turn as Queen Elizabeth II in The Queen. Mirren has also starred in films including The Madness of King George, Hitchcock, and Red. She was also the narrator of last year’s summer blockbuster Barbie.

Country superstar Shania Twain will also be honoured with her own Role Model doll. She showed off her new Barbie doll in a sweet post on her Instagram, writing in the caption: “Pinch me. All I’ve wanted to do my whole life is tell stories of empowerment, independence and self-expression through my songwriting, getting to do that and inspire women and girls along the way is the dream... everything else is a beautiful bonus!”

The five-time Grammy winner is the voice behind smash hits like “You’re Still the One” and “Man! I Feel Like A Woman!” She has gone on to become the most profitable country-pop artist of all time, having sold 100 million albums worldwide and enjoyed the success of her sold-out 2023 tour. Twain is set to begin a residency in Las Vegas starting in May.

Fellow pop artist, Australian-born singer Kylie Minogue, was also honoured with a Role Model Barbie. With over 80 million albums sold worldwide and her recent 2023 song “Padam Padam” and album Tension topping the Billboard charts, Minogue has undoubtedly made an impact with her pop confections.

The two-time Grammy winner took to Instagram to gush about her Barbie doll, styled in an homage to the red outfit she wore in her “Padam Padam” music video. “Look at Padam Barbie,” she wrote. “Baby Kylie would NOT believe this is happening right now.”

In addition to these famous women, indigenous Brazilian content creator Maira Gomez, Mexican filmmaker Lila Avilés, German comic Enissa Amani, and Japanese model Nicole Fujita have also been honoured with Role Model dolls made in their likeness.