Bill Maher Slams 'Barbie' Movie As 'Preachy, Man-Hating, And A Zombie Lie'

It seems Bill Maher is joining the list of conservatives who is not a fan of the new "Barbie" movie.

Even though the Greta Gerwig-directed feature has raked in over a billion dollars at the box office, it is getting raked over the coals by conservatives who are condemning its "preachy" message. The latest to speak out against the box office juggernaut is the HBO political commentator, who slammed the film as "preachy, man-hating, and a Zombie Lie."

Earlier this week, the "Real Time With Bill Maher" host took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share his thoughts on the "Barbie" movie, which has divided audiences while still proving to be a box office darling. Maher began his lengthy statement, writing, "OK, 'Barbie': I was hoping it wouldn't be preachy, man-hating, and a #ZombieLie - alas, it was all three."

The 67-year-old political commentator then went on to give his definition of a Zombie Lie: "Something that never was true, but certain people refuse to stop saying it (tax cuts for the rich increase revenues, e.g.); OR something that USED to be true but no longer is, but certain people pretend it's still true." Maher says that the "Barbie" film is that kind of a "Zombie Lie" and then proceeds to give a short synopsis of the film.

"Spoiler alert, Barbie fights the Patriarchy," he wrote. "Right up to the Mattel board who created her, consisting of 12 white men! The Patriarchy! Except there's a Mattel board in real life, and it's 7 men and 5 women. OK, not perfect even-steven, but not the way the board IN THE MOVIE - which takes place in 2023 - is portrayed. And not really any longer deserving of the word 'patriarchy.' Yes, there was one, and remnants of it remain - but this movie is so 2000-LATE."

Maher then goes on to write, "At one point the Barbies have to win over the Kens, and they are told to do it by pretending to act helpless and not know how to do stuff. Helen Gurley Brown called, she wants her premise back. Yes, that WAS a thing. I saw 'Barbie' with a woman in her 30s who said, 'I don't know a single woman of any age who would act like that today.'"

"I know, I know, 'How could I know about the patriarchy, I AM a man!' That argument is so old and so silly," Maher wrote. "Of course, none of us can know exactly what others go through [in] life, but I can see the world around me, and I can read data. The real Mattel board is a pretty close mirror of the country, where 45% of the 449 board seats filled last year in Fortune 500 companies were women."

"Truth is, I'm not the one who's out of step - I'm living in the year we're living in. Barbie is fun, I enjoyed it - but it IS a #ZombieLie. And people who don't go along with zombie lies did not take some red pill - just staying true to CURRENT reality," he concluded. "Let's live in the year we're living in! Hi Ken!!!"

Many users were not really all that impressed with Bill Maher's take on the "Barbie" movie, pointing out that he wasn't exactly the movie's target audience. "Yep, this is the review the whole world was waiting for - a 67-year-old childless misogynist’s take on a movie about a toy doll.

I’m sure it will now make zero more dollars," one user commented.

Another sarcastic user chimed in, "Bill Maher, after watching Barbie, I divorced my husband of 20 years to go find my very own Ken. Wish me luck!" Another fan of the movie who was in on the joke, replied, “Don’t look for a Ken! Find yourself a good Allan!”

That being said, some users did have some genuine complaints about the film. "I enjoyed the Barbie movie and held the rank of CPT in the U.S. Army in 1985. It's pretend," one user wrote, adding, although they went on to say that "The Board should have offered the Mom, who showed real talent, a position on the Board - A missed opportunity."

"The movie is funny from the outset because it writes Ken in the same way Hollywood often writes women - without agency, vacuous, and requiring constant validation," another user pointed out. "If he thinks the way Ken is written is man-hating then what does he think of the rest of Hollywood’s writing?"

Regardless of what Bill Maher thinks of the “Barbie” movie, it currently has an 88% certified fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes and is being praised by audiences and critics alike. Now the only question on everyone’s minds is: will it get a sequel?