Bratz dolls have long been seen as the “anti-Barbie.” Bratz are edgy and rebellious; Barbies are preppy and traditional. Now, in the wake of the record-breaking Barbie movie, Bratz are mounting a comeback, and they’re recruiting Kylie Jenner to do it.
Jenner, who has been compared to the cat-eyed, pouty-lipped doll in the past, is being “Bratzified” in the brand’s first celebrity partnership. The pop culture icon is launching a line of dolls in her likeness, with one doll selling for as much as $100. And the Bratz-Barbie dynamic goes beyond contrasting aesthetics—Bratz’s maker, MGA Entertainment, once went into a nearly decade-long legal battle with Barbie parent Mattel over plagiarism and ownership claims.
Bratz were introduced to the public in 2001. The dolls’ distinctive look was defined by their arched eyebrows, bold eyeshadows, and full, glossy lips. They wore fashionable outfits reminiscent of Britney Spears in the ‘90s and were celebrated for their ethnically diverse representation. But they were also criticized for being overtly sexual, and some parents deemed the dolls inappropriate for their young children.
Still, Bratz steadily ate into Barbie’s market share, reportedly grossing over $2 billion in sales in its first five years on the market and selling over 150 million dolls within the decade after they were introduced. By 2004, Bratz outsold Barbie in the U.K., the BBC reported. That same year Mattel launched a messy legal battle against MGA Entertainment, plunging the two manufacturing giants into years of litigious twists and turns.
You don’t own me
In its lawsuit, Mattel accused Bratz creator Carter Bryant of stealing Mattel’s trade secrets. The Barbie parent asserted that Bryant had been working at Mattel when he first designed what would eventually become the Barbie doll competitor. In 2008, a jury found the claim to be true and awarded Mattel $100 million, but the Ninth Circuit soon overturned the…
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