Margot Robbie, known for her stellar roles and as a champion for women’s rights, especially with her recent hit “Barbie,” has oddly become a hot topic on social media. Instead of highlighting her achievements, some users are debating if she’s just “average” looking.
It all started with a tweet showing her without makeup, and spiraled from there with folks comparing her to ’90s stars and discussing her looks over the years.
And then everything moved to TikTok and it all began.
However, it didn’t take long for most people to notice the problematic nature of this seemingly trivial topic.
“In which world is Margot Robbie considered ‘average’? You might ask. But that’s not the real question here… Those calling Margot ‘average’ are well aware that she possesses all the physical attributes associated with Eurocentric beauty standards. She was chosen as the stereotypical Barbie for that very reason. It’s not about Margot’s appearance, but rather reinforcing a deeply misogynistic power dynamic where women exist only to appeal to men,” writes Lucy Morgan for Glamour UK, digging deeper into the issue.
Indeed, Margot has long been labeled a sex symbol because of her roles in movies such as “The Wolf of Wall Street” and “Bombshell.” Her portrayal of Harley Quinn also falls into such categories. Although she has acted in numerous films where appearance wasn’t the focus of the script, men have for years only viewed Margot through the lens of her looks.
Then she landed a role in “Barbie,” a movie that addresses the issue of a society obsessed with looks, playing a doll that has for decades played a significant role in shaping women’s self-perception. “The advertising campaign was a master class in feminist marketing. While through Barbie, girls can see themselves as presidents, lawyers, diplomats, doctors, Supreme Court judges, or even mermaids, boys here are Ken – just Ken and nothing more,” writes Morgan.
“Greta Gerwig’s film explores the unrealistic beauty standards immortalized by Mattel’s earlier versions of the Barbie doll, questioning the idea that the male gaze is the ultimate judgment of female beauty. It’s no wonder some men are now angered by this,” she concludes.
Thousands of women and men on social media agree with her, having only one thing to say on the topic: “What the hell?” “The suggestion that Margot Robbie, one of the most beautiful women in the world, is ‘average’ serves as a reminder to all women to know their place, not to be swept away by the empowerment that Barbie offers, to stick to self-comparison and shame, and to always see their value solely and exclusively through – the eyes of men,” adds Morgan.
