JOSH SILVERMAN DISCUSSES BARNEY'S WORLD | TV KIDS FESTIVAL 2025

Yeah, look, I think there's another great question. There's a time and a place for both. You want to certainly embrace and recognize the importance of heritage, legacy, the core sort of DNA that makes a piece of IP what it is, and you have to be really careful about that. So we're very thoughtful about what we do, but there's also an opportunity and the benefit of refreshing. As we look at our portfolio, there's times where we do a little bit of both. We have these multigenerational, universal pieces of IP, these brands and franchises, and the goal for us is to remain as consistent as possible. Where there are opportunities for us as we look forward is Barney, which we've talked about in the past, is a really great example. We certainly wanted to keep Barney true to what makes Barney Barney, but we also wanted to modernize it to a certain degree, to have it be refreshed for today's audience. That falls very much within a strategy we've deployed called 'new-stalgia.' Barney for preschoolers today is brand new, but for people who grew up with it, like myself and perhaps you and others, there's a nostalgia factor. The importance here of creating that piece of content, that preschool show, was where you could have co-viewing that is really authentic to parents and kids at the same time. Often times, parents are in the room while the kids are watching, and this is something they could watch together and enjoy. The parents will dip into the nostalgia factor, but for the kids it's brand new. So that's where we've been able to find that harmony and balance. What's interesting for us also is that some of our properties come with canon and they come from a universe. An example would be Monster High. There's a universe of Monster High characters. We'll create prequels and sequels, side stories, and new characters, and certainly extend, but it comes with it from a universe, from core canon. That's really great and something we continue to lean into from a narrative and storytelling standpoint. Also, what's really interesting and some of the stuff I get excited about is where we have these globally iconic, incredibly high awareness toys like Uno, a View-Master, or Magic 8 Ball that people know and love, but there is no story yet. It's a white canvas. We're able there to create new stories, have creatives bring their vision to these pieces of property, and really create new stories where none existed before, and create canon and create universe. So it's an interesting way we think about our portfolio. There is no one way we do it. We again really want to extend that emotional connection to our fans, and by telling stories, that balance of nostalgia and the fandom that exists today is an effort and certainly an area of focus for us.

Yeah, absolutely. It's Barney 24 hours a day for me as well. I could probably find my Barney cross in here somewhere. Look, we reimagined Barney, and this is where we continue to mine our portfolio. We've done it with Monster High, we've done it with Polly Pocket, and we're going to continue to mine the portfolio and really take these properties, polish them, and bring them back. With Barney's World, it was an opportunity to bring Barney back to preschoolers. We've developed this content. Our show is airing now. We're very pleased with the quality and the performance has been great. It's rolled out on Max, Cartoon Network, and Jio. For us, we really recognize Barney's passionate fan base, often times Millennials and Gen Z who are now parents themselves, and it provided a unique opportunity for us to relaunch the franchise, building on what makes Barney Barney, the nostalgia factor as I talked about earlier, but also creating something that for today was authentically Barney and representative of stories we want to put into the world. Core messages of self-care and love, kindness, consideration, compassion. These are all authentically Barney. We think the new content certainly does that in a beautiful way with music and incredible characters, but it's something that both parents and this new generation can embrace and engage with on their own. So it's a lot of purple dinosaur for us. We're really excited about it, and we'll continue to lean in there.

Yeah, look, I think at Mattel, our goal is really to empower generations to explore the wonder of childhood and reach their full potential. Barney is a great example of how its messages are considered relevant today, and they do provide a foundation for addressing social emotional issues. But at the end of the day, it's all about great creative and great storytelling, and so you're able to have that marriage here. Barney provides comfort and happiness, especially in what is a very fast-paced and complex world, and we hope that Barney will spark conversation between parents and children about kindness and self-love and community, and reminding children to reflect those feelings inward. We've modernized it, but we haven't modernized it in any way that moves away from what makes it core Barney. So we feel like this show is a really great example of how we lean in. But at Mattel, as I said, our goal is to empower generations to explore the wonder of childhood and reach their full potential. You could see that manifest itself across everything we do, from the toy side all the way into what we do in content and other experiences.

Yeah, I know, 80 years, it's amazing. Eight decades. And I would say it's only the beginning. We have so many exciting things in front of us to celebrate. We have some amazing plans across our iconic brands, really Barbie, Hot Wheels, Barney, Fisher-Price, Uno, and more. You're going to see everything from nostalgia picture books that hearken back to the history, a digital game featuring all of our characters, again very much reflecting the IP throughout these eight decades. We're going to have an incredible exhibition that's going to take you back to your childhood. We're going to be doing some really great things across toys and content, consumer products and experiences, and we will be opening our first themed park experience. Mattel Adventure Park will also be a portion of it. So there's a lot. Look, for eight decades, we've been inspiring generations with iconic toys and experiences while giving back to those in need, and we're committed to continuing to spearhead the joy of play. And as I said, we can't wait to see what the next 80 years are going to bring.