The highest-grossing film in Warner Bros' history may not get a sequel — because the studio and its three biggest creative names cannot agree on money.

Negotiations over a Barbie sequel have stalled after months of talks with Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling and director Greta Gerwig failed to produce a deal. Warner Bros Discovery chief executive David Zaslav declined to approve the salaries and profit-participation packages being sought by the stars and film-maker, according to Variety (Variety). Ryan Gosling is reportedly asking for $20m (£14.8m) to reprise his role as Ken, as The Guardian reports (The Guardian).

The problem starts with the contracts on the first film. Warner Bros signed Gerwig to a one-movie deal and did not require Robbie or Gosling to commit to sequels. That means all three are now renegotiating from scratch — with enormous leverage. Barbie earned an estimated $1.5bn (£1.1bn) at the worldwide box office, collected eight Academy Award nominations, and ranks as the 18th highest-grossing film in cinema history. It is also the highest-grossing live-action comedy ever made.

Warner Bros co-chairs Pam Abdy and Michael De Luca said in a statement that the studio holds a rights deal with Mattel and has made substantial offers, but has been unable to reach an agreement on the next Barbie film (The Guardian). The New York Times first reported the stalled talks on 31 July (NYT).

There is a deadline. If Warner Bros does not finalise deals with Robbie, Gosling and Gerwig by December, the film rights to Barbie revert to Mattel. The toymaker could then make another Barbie film with a different studio — but could not use any original story elements from the 2023 film, and none of the three principals could be involved.

Gerwig and her writing partner Noah Baumbach have said they have an idea for a sequel and are ready to begin writing if terms can be agreed. All three principals are represented by the talent agency CAA, which coordinates their negotiating positions.

The standoff lands at a difficult moment for Warner Bros. Two of the studio's recent high-budget productions — the DC Comics film Supergirl and The Bride, a feminist reworking of Frankenstein — underperformed at the box office this year and failed to recoup their costs. Separately, Warner Bros' planned merger with Paramount was put on hold after a group of 12 US states won a temporary injunction blocking the deal.

For context on the numbers being debated: when a star negotiates profit participation, they are asking for a percentage of the film's revenue — known in the industry as backend — rather than a flat fee alone. On a $1.5bn-grossing property, that percentage translates into sums that make studio executives reach for the brake.

What gives this standoff its edge is the clock. December is five months away. Warner Bros has the rights, the director is ready to write, and the stars want to return. The gap is purely financial — and on a film that earned $1.5bn, the gap is measured in tens of millions.