Why One Barbie Actor Was Excluded From The Cast's Group Chats
The pink-fuelled production that is Greta Gerwig's "Barbie" movie has a stacked cast full of celebs including Margot Robbie as Barbie herself, Ryan Gosling as the main Ken (or "just Ken," if you have seen the posters), Will Ferrell as the CEO of Mattel, and lots, lots more Barbies and Kens.
In People's special Barbie-themed edition, the large cast discussed the special things they all did to bond, including cast sleepovers for all the Barbies (Kens were allowed to visit but not stay), and movie nights hosted by real-life Barbie Robbie and her husband.
One of the most simple but sweet ways for the cast to bond was a large group chat that included all the Barbies and Kens. However, one cast member wasn't included, and that was Michael Cera who plays Ken's friend Allan. "I don't have an iPhone myself . . . I have a flip phone," he shared. "But I still think I wouldn't belong on (the group chat) anyway, because Allan is sort of in his own little world."
He has never been one to keep up with social media
Cera has spoken about his aversion to technology previously. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the actor opened up regarding his decision to remain private despite his career, stating that he chose not to join social media just because he never really wanted to. "But [social media] just [is] not interesting to me. But I also don't have a smartphone. And that is a conscious choice, because I feel a bit of fear about it honestly like I'd really lose control of my waking life," he added.
Cera additionally told a story about when smartphones were first becoming popular and he got lunch with a buddy who sat there on his phone the whole time, causing him to gain an "early aversion" to any form of smartphone.
His anti-social media existence is indeed a bold decision to make in the age of social media and smartphones, but Cera doesn't feel pressured to make an Instagram account any time soon, pointing out that he probably wouldn't be a contender for roles that require a large social media following anyway.
Michael Cera's character may have a bigger role than expected
When it came to making the "Barbie" movie, it seems like every day was a good one. According to Cera, who mentioned it in the above People interview, director Greta Gerwig gave the cast gifts related to their characters. "Greta's gift for me when I arrived was a picture disc of NSYNC's No Strings Attached, which felt like somehow a real guiding light in the backstory of this character," he revealed.
This gift is probably due to speculation about the nature of Cera's character Allan. When Allan's doll was released in the 1960s, he was referred to as Ken's friend who could wear Ken's clothes — not necessarily something close friends would do — and, though he wasn't a Barbie doll that received backlash, he was discontinued. Judging by Gerwig's gift to Cera, it seems likely that "Barbie" will play into the undertones of Allan being something more than just Ken's buddy in the movie.
Cera may not have a smartphone or social media, but he's definitely in the know about things that matter; like who exactly is Allan to Ken, anyway?