Discover Real Life Barbie Locations in LA

Directed by Greta Gerwig, Barbie stars Margot Robbie in the title role and Ryan Gosling as Ken, and follows their adventures in Barbieland and the Real World. Barbie was released in the U.S. in July 2023. To date, Barbie has grossed nearly $1.5 billion at the box office and became the highest-grossing movie of 2023, the highest-grossing global release in Warner Bros. history, and the 14th highest-grossing film of all time. Barbie is nominated for eight Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Supporting Actor (Gosling), Best Supporting Actress (America Ferrera) and Best Original Song ("I'm Just Ken" and "What Was I Made For?").

Filmed mostly at Warner Bros. Studios, Leavesden in England, the look of Barbie was heavily influenced by the Mid-Century design aesthetics that are so closely associated with both Southern California and the iconic doll. Mattel co-founder Ruth Handler (played by Rhea Perlman in the movie) created Barbie, which made its debut at the American International Toy Fair in New York City on March 9, 1959 (now celebrated as Barbie's "birthday"). Fittingly, Barbie and Ken’s adventures in the Real World take place in the Los Angeles area, which is where Mattel’s real-life headquarters are located.

Barbie filmed at L.A. County locations from Downtown LA to Venice to Long Beach. It's no coincidence that many of the locations are historic sites that exemplify art and design movements that emerged between the 1930s and 1970s. Read on and scout Los Angeles locations from Barbie for your own adventure in the Real World.

MILD SPOILERS AHEAD

Barbieland, the Mid-Century inspired pink paradise that’s home to the Barbies and Kens, features visual references to real-life Los Angeles locations like the Theme Building at LAX (aka "BAX" in the movie), Randy's Donuts, Venice Beach and the Santa Monica Pier. In a boardroom scene at Mattel HQ (see below), the iconic Hollywood Sign and Downtown LA skyline can be seen in the background.

Production designer Sarah Greenwood told Condé Nast Traveler that the Barbie Dream Houses were inspired by Richard Neutra's Kaufmann House in Palm Springs. In an interview with House Beautiful, Greenwood said that Weird Barbie (Kate McKinnon) lives on a hilltop in an off-kilter house that was influenced by the house from Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho. Fans can see the original Psycho house on the Studio Tour at Universal Studios Hollywood.

Early in the movie, a panoramic shot of Barbieland includes Googie-style signs from the long-gone Premiere Lanes bowling alley in Santa Fe Springs; and the car wash off Laurel Canyon. The Premiere Lanes sign is currently on view at the Valley Relics Museum in Van Nuys.

Barbie: "Did you bring your rollerblades?"
Ken: "I literally go nowhere without them."

Venice Beach Recreation Center & The Boardwalk
Barbie and Ken embark on a journey and enter the Real World at world-famous Venice Beach, where they rollerblade past the Venice Beach Recreation Center (1800 Ocean Front Walk) along the Ocean Front Walk (aka "The Boardwalk"). Later in the movie, The Boardwalk appears again when Barbie, Mattel employee Gloria (America Ferrera) and her tween daughter Sasha (Ariana Greenblatt) rollerblade back to Barbieland with Mattel executives, led by CEO Will Ferrell, in pursuit.

Skate Dance Plaza
Venice Beach was dubbed the “roller skating capital of the world” back in the 1970s, and its popularity as a destination for skaters has endured through the decades. In 1999, the L.A. City Council dubbed the park Skate Dance Plaza (1401 Ocean Front Walk), where you can still see performances and even learn how to skate!

Venice Beach Basketball Courts
Venice Beach's famed basketball courts (1708-1798 Ocean Front Walk) are seen during Barbie and Ken’s roll through the Boardwalk. The courts are known for pickup games, as well as the Venice Basketball League that runs through the summer months.

Lucky Venice Store
After a run-in with the law, Barbie and Ken outfit themselves in Western attire from the Lucky Venice Store (1501 Ocean Front Walk), recognizable for its “Sun Lotion” sign.

Santa Monica City Hall
A second encounter with Venice PD leads Barbie to send Ken away while she meditates on their situation outside the police station, which is actually Santa Monica City Hall (1685 Main St). Built in 1939, the Classical Moderne building was designed by J.M. Estep and Donald Parkinson, whose landmark Los Angeles projects with his father John include City Hall, Homer Laughlin Building (Grand Central Market), LA Memorial Coliseum and Union Station.

Tongva Park
Barbie has an epiphany as she gazes at Tongva Park (1615 Ocean Ave), located across the street from Santa Monica City Hall. Named after the indigenous people of the Los Angeles area, the award-winning park incorporates native plants as well as pre-existing trees into its design. As Barbie looks across the park, she sees a wide range of Real World emotions, from kids playing to couples laughing and arguing.

Ken has his own epiphany in Century City, the Westside neighborhood known for the Fairmont Century Plaza, Westfield Century City and Fox Plaza, which stars as Nakatomi Plaza in Die Hard. As he walks outside the Creative Artists Agency building (2002 Avenue of the Stars), Ken starts to realize the Real World is a patriarchy.

The Century Plaza Towers (2029 and 2049 Century Park East) are seen in the montage - completed in 1975, the towers were designed by Minoru Yamasaki, renowned for designing the original World Trade Center in New York City.

Word about Barbie and Ken on the loose in the Real World reaches Worldwide Mattel Headquarters. In reality, the campus is located in El Segundo - in Barbie, Mattel HQ is portrayed by Bank of America Plaza (333 S. Hope St), located on Bunker Hill in Downtown LA.

Opened as the Security Pacific Building in 1974, the office tower was designed by A.C. Martin & Associates, which previously worked on the nearby Department of Water & Power headquarters (aka the John Ferraro Building). Along with exteriors of the tower and brief shots in the lobby, Barbie features Alexander Calder's Four Arches sculpture in the plaza.

Barbie gets a reality check from Sasha and Ken gets a confidence boost at Davy Crockett Junior High School, played by Paul Revere Charter Middle School & Magnet Center (1450 Allenford Ave) in Pacific Palisades. Opened in 1955, the school's design is in keeping with the film's Mid-Century aesthetic. Before it was a middle school, the site was a polo field and hosted the equestrian events at the 1932 Summer Olympics.

When Barbie escapes from Mattel HQ, she jumps in with Gloria and Sasha and the Mattel suits go after them. The car chase was filmed in Downtown Long Beach - visual clues to the location include an Ocean Boulevard exit sign off Shoreline Drive.

Gloria turns onto Frontenac Court in front of Cutthroat (425 E. 1st St), then backs her car into a hiding spot on E. Alta Way - in the distance you can see the Broadlind Hotel (149 Linden Ave), a historic landmark that was built in 1928.

SPOILER ALERT
In the final scenes of the movie, Barbie begins her transition into the Real World at the 100 Wilshire office building, where Gloria's family drops her off on the corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Ocean Avenue in Santa Monica. The LA Conservancy notes that bandleader and TV host Lawrence Welk developed the property in 1971.

Palisades Park is located off Ocean Avenue across from 100 Wilshire. In Barbie you'll see the statue of Saint Monica (aka Santa Monica), created by Eugene Monrahan during the Great Depression as part of the Public Works of Art Projects program affiliated with the New Deal.