What the Potential Adaptation of the Barbie Movie Means

What does it mean for a screenplay to be adapted? Is it derived from a book or personal experience? How does it relate to the eponymous doll known for her love of pink?

These questions have been raised by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences as the "Barbie" movie strives for recognition during awards season.

The popular film, which made waves during its release last summer, had been lobbying for consideration in the best original screenplay category at the upcoming Oscars, Variety reported. However, prior to the start of Oscar voting on Jan. 11, the writers branch of AMPAS determined that the film qualifies for best adapted screenplay under their guidelines, citing its use of existing characters and its acknowledgement of Mattel in its credits.

Here's the significance of this distinction and what it means for the film's awards prospects.

What makes a screenplay adapted or original?

There are a total of two Academy Awards categories dedicated to screenwriting: Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Original Screenplay. The latter recognizes works that are purely the creation of the writers, not based on any existing source material, but rather on their imagination and creativity.

The former category, adapted screenplay, is distinct as it pertains to films based on preexisting works such as plays, books, or sequels like "Toy Story 3," which was a nominee in 2011. However, this does not imply that adapted screenplays are superior or inferior to original screenplays. Many beloved Oscar nominees, including "Top Gun: Maverick" (a sequel), "12 Years a Slave" (based on a memoir), and "Joker" (based on a comic book character and franchise) all fall within this category according to the Academy's criteria.

Has this happened before?

The "Transformers" movies, despite being nominated for several Oscars, would still be classified as adapted, given that they are derived from a toy line and predominantly consist of sequels.

The movie "Barbie" presents a challenge as AMPAS considers it an adapted screenplay, while the Writers Guild of America categorizes it as an original screenplay for the WGA Awards. Despite usually aligning on screenplay categories, AMPAS and WGA occasionally disagree, with AMPAS typically taking a more conservative approach. This was evident with the 2016 film "Moonlight," which AMPAS labeled as an adapted screenplay due to its basis on a play that was never produced for the stage, while the WGA considered it an original screenplay.

What does this mean for Barbie?

This is where things get interesting. In terms of awards, winning for adapted is not very different from winning for original - an Oscar trophy is an Oscar trophy, after all.

Some categories may present a greater challenge to win in than others. If "Barbie" receives a nomination for best adapted screenplay, writers Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach may find themselves up against tough competition, such as "Killers of the Flower Moon" by Eric Roth and Martin Scorcese and "Oppenheimer" by Christopher Nolan. In the original screenplay category, films like "Past Lives" by Celine Song and "The Holdovers" by David Hemingson are expected to be strong contenders.

Despite all of this, it's likely that "Barbie" will be a topic of conversation at the 2024 Academy Awards, regardless of whether the doll receives an award or not. The nominations for the 96th Academy Awards will be revealed on January 23, with the ceremony scheduled to take place on March 10th.