Sign up for the Today newsletter
Get everything you need to know to start your day, delivered right to your inbox every morning.
Ayo Edebiri to write, potentially star in ‘Barney’ live-action movie
Dorchester native Ayo Edebiri will pen a script for a live-action "Barney" movie aimed at adults, with Mattel executives saying the A24 film will be a "surrealistic" journey into "millennial angst."
I love you, you love me. But will we love a “Barney” movie from Ayo Edebiri?
Building off the success of Mattel’s “Barbie” movie, the Dorchester native and star of “The Bear” will reportedly pen a script for a live-action movie based on Mattel’s Barney the Dinosaur, the eponymous star of ’90s children’s TV show “Barney & Friends.”
According to Variety, Edebiri is also in talks to star in the “Barney” movie, which will be released by A24.
Talks of adapting “Barney” for the big screen first surfaced in 2019, when “Get Out” star Daniel Kaluuya was slated to star in what was billed an “adult” take on the kid-friendly series, which ran from 1988 to 2010 on PBS.
Advertisement:
Kaluuya will remain as a producer on the Edebiri-written film, but is no longer in talks to star, per Variety.
Mattel has not released any new information about the plot or tone of the live-action “Barney” movie, but five years’ worth of interviews paint the project as significantly more somber than the cloyingly cheerful show.
In a 2020 interview, Kaluuya described being inspired by the “heartbreaking” realization that the message central to Barney’s trademark song wasn’t always true in real life.
“Barney taught us, ‘I love you, you love me. Won’t you say you love me too?’ That’s one of the first songs I remember, and what happens when that isn’t true?” Kaluuya said. “I thought that was really heartbreaking.”
Advertisement:
In a 2023 interview with the New Yorker, Mattel Films Vice President Kevin McKeon (also a Boston native) described the “Barney” movie as a “surrealistic” and “A24-type” film, adding that Mattel was “here to make art.”
“We’re leaning into the Millennial angst of the property rather than fine-tuning this for kids,” McKeon said. “It’s really a play for adults. Not that it’s R-rated, but it’ll focus on some of the trials and tribulations of being 30-something, growing up with Barney—just the level of disenchantment within the generation.”
Ayo Edebiri’s upcoming projects
Edebiri’s “Barney” script is the latest project for the busy actress, who made time to appear on the “SNL 50” anniversary special alongside fellow Boston-area comedienne Rachel Dratch.
In March, Edebiri will star in the A24 horror movie “Opus,” playing a young journalist hungry for a scoop who travels to the remote compound of a reclusive pop star (Cambridge resident Jon Malkovich) who last appeared in public 30 years ago.
After that, Edebiri will reprise her role as chef Sydney Adamu on season four of “The Bear,” which is expected to be released on Hulu in June 2025.
Finally, Edebiri will star in Luca Guadagnino’s latest film “After the Hunt” alongside Julia Roberts and Andrew Garfield.
Advertisement:
According to a plot synopsis released by Amazon Studios, “After the Hunt,” set to hit theaters in October 2025, is about a college professor (Roberts) who “finds herself at a personal and professional crossroads when a star pupil levels an accusation against one of her colleagues.”
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com