When a movie makes as much as Barbie did last year, you know what happens next: a sequel! Or a spinoff! Or failing those, maybe a tangentially-related franchise? Since both Margot Robbie and Greta Gerwig have no interest in Barbie 2, the latter is what’s happening, with Mattel figuring they can get audiences back to theaters to watch movies about Hot Wheels, Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots, even the Magic 8-Ball. Still, spinoffs are at least being talked about. Maybe there will be a Ken movie. And Michael Cera wouldn’t mind dusting off Allan, his break-out scene stealer, even though by his own admission there’s not a lot to him.
Per The Hollywood Reporter, Cera went on The Tonight Show, where he was asked about being up/down for more Allan Sherwood.
“I think it would be kind of a weird movie, but I’m there,” Cera told the host. He then laid out the case for why an Allan movie would either a) not work or b) pretty bizarre:
“He’s kind of like an inactive character. He kind of just stands [there]. For me, the biggest inspiration for the character was Hans Moleman, that character in The Simpsons. He just stands there all the time. For me, that’s like the core of the character.”
The Allan doll was first introduced in 1964 as one of Ken’s friends, with whom he could exchange clothes. In Gerwig and cowriter Noah Baumbach’s film, he was the only man in Barbieland who didn’t taken part in Ken’s toxic/ridiculous patriarchy rebellion. Allan’s awkwardness made him an endearing part of an already goofy picture, giving Cera — who’s also an established serious Broadway actor and star of smart indie films — one of his funnier roles.
Could Allan sustain an entire movie by himself? Perhaps if it was treated like a renegade blockbuster that isn’t trying to play nice. Then again, Barbie was itself a renegade blockbuster, thinking way outside the box far as modern films based on famous IP go, and look what happened there. Besides, who wouldn’t want to spend an entire movie with a character inspired by The Simpsons‘ top shelf supporting character Hans Moleman?
You can watch Cera’s Tonight Show appearance in the video below.
(Via THR)
