Margot Robbie’s Hairstyle At The Barbie Premiere Holds A Very Special Meaning

Consider the mountains of pre-Barbie promo as a simple warm-up. As great as the press tour manicures, rentable DreamHouse, and hilarious interview soundbites have been, they’re all just a lead-up to the string of events that really matter: the movie’s international debuts. And in accordance with the magnitude of the global premiere, Margot Robbie’s Barbie ponytail is a full-on masterpiece. The film’s titular star has worn a few ponytails both on-screen and to assorted red carpets, but the retro flair in this iteration are worlds apart from her previous updos.

Just like virtually every one of Robbie’s ensembles and corresponding hairstyles on the Barbie movie tour, her premiere ponytail and black sequined gown played homage to an actual vintage look worn by the original doll. In this case, her hair and outfit reference the “Singer In The Spotlight Barbie” from the 1960s — but celebrity hairstylist Bryce Scarlett took a few well-chosen creative liberties to appropriately modernize the throwback vibe. Rather than go for a pair of puffy bangs, like the sort seen on the OG Barbie, Scarlett pulled Robbie’s forelocks into a swooped, gelled side-part that frame her face but don’t pull all the focus the way a true, front-across fringe can.

“I was inspired to do this doll-like ponytail from the 1960s to coordinate with her stunning ‘60s-inspired custom Schiaparelli gown,” Scarlett explained in press materials, even sharing the photos of the Barbie he referenced on his Instagram Story.

Scarlett used a slew of Redken products and Tangle Teezer styling tools and brushes to bring the look the life. After some dry detangling, Scarlett shared that he washed and conditioned Robbie with Redken Acidic Bonding Concentrate Shampooand the Redken Acidic Bonding Concentrate Lightweight Liquid Conditioner. To make sure it was all evenly distributed, he gave the damp hair a brush-out with the Tangle Teezer’s The Ultimate Detangler.

In classic retro fashion, Scarlett set Robbie’s hair in large Velcro rollers after blowing it out with styling cream and heat protectant — that’s the key to all that big, bouncy volume seen through her the lengths of her ponytail. Finally, it was time to actually form the updo itself. Scarlett left two inches of hair around the hairline free to construct the bangs later, but pulled the rest back to the crown of Robbie’s head and secured it in place with hair ties. He then curled the ponytail, brushed it out, and locked the bangs into place with the Redken Max Hold Hairspray, which also added some extra shine.

Celebrity makeup artist Pati Dubroff created Robbie’s timeless red lip look, the perfect compliment to her ‘60s updo. In some behind-the-scenes shots, Dubroff gives fans a glimpse at the cosmetic testing process, sharing video clips of her swatching potential lip colors for the big premiere. Eventually, the pair settled on Chanel’s N°1 de CHANEL Lip and Cheek Balm in Red Camellia layered with the Rouge Allure L’Extrait High-Intensity Lip Colour in 854, outlined by a matching red lip liner.

So much detail and focus went into Robbie’s global premiere look, but it makes sense — what’s bigger than Barbie? Get the star’s doll-like look with the products below, all of which were used on the red carpet.