Barbie’s Blessing: How Shabbat Inspired the Hit Film

While writing and directing Barbie, Greta Gerwig searched for a special, magical feeling that would captivate theater audiences. A childhood memory provided a surprising frame of reference: The Jewish tradition of parents blessing their children at the Shabbat table.

The fascinating backstory is described in The New York Times:

Gerwig grew up in a Christian home in Sacramento, California. Her family enjoyed a close-knit friendship with a family of observant Jews. The two families vacationed and played together, in an atmosphere of warmth, laughter, unity and love.

On Friday nights, Gerwig would join the Jewish family for Shabbat dinner. There, the father would bless his children with the biblical words: “May God bless you and protect you. May God show you favor and be gracious to you. May God show you kindness and grant you peace” (Numbers 6:24-26).

Every week, with the room enveloped in an aura of peace, the man would then rest his hand on Gerwig’s head and bless her, too.

At those sacred moments, Gerwig felt unconditional love and acceptance – the building blocks of self-esteem. She recalls: “Whatever your wins and losses were for the week, whatever you did or you didn’t do, when you come to this table, your value has nothing to do with that. You are a child of God… That’s your value.”

For millennia, this blessing has reassured Jewish children that one’s value is not determined by worldly successes or failures. Communicating this sense of safety, security and self-worth helps children to embrace their true selves – to feel “enough,” just as they are.

In a world that often moves at an alarming pace, with pressures and stressors that can weigh heavily on our hearts, it is essential that we find such moments of tranquility and connection. No matter what conflicts may have occurred during the week – at home, office or playground – everything can melt away in the light of Shabbat.

While creating Barbie, Gerwig imagined movie-goers sitting in a dark, air-conditioned theater for two hours – and sought to transport them to a safe space, an oasis of love and wholeness that embodies the warmth and beauty of being blessed… protected and surrounded by peace… as a cherished child of God.

“The idea of a loving God… who looks at you and says, ‘Honey, you’re doing okay,’ is something I feel like I need and I wanted to give to other people,” she tells The Times.

Her magic formula: “I want people to feel like I did at Shabbat dinner… I want them to get blessed.”