How Pixar Finally Wooed and Won Barbie

By Jack December 1, 1999 5:32 PM

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Although they were turned down by Mattel when they were asked to use the likeness of Barbie in the original Toy Story, Pixar producers had no trouble landing rights to use Mattel's top-seller in the sequel.?In an interview with the Knight Ridder Newspapers, Toy Story 2 director John Lasseter commented Tuesday that he "respected" the company's rejection.?"I mean, who were we, back then? No one knew...?But then, of course, the movie turns into the No.?1 movie of 1995, the No.?1 videocassette of 1996, selling 22 million, so they were kind of kicking themselves...?So when we were developing the new movie and had this notion of the toys walking around the closed toy store, and we thought every toy store has a pink aisle that's just filled...?with Barbie stuff, we talked to Mattel.?And before we even finished the question, they said, 'Yes! Yes!'"

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