Yes, Sugar Daddy Ken was a real thing in the Noughties

A little Barbie trivia for you – there is an actual doll called Sugar Daddy Ken.

We know there’s a whole range of different Barbie and Kens, Greta Gerwig has cast many of Hollywood’s favourites to play them in the movie, and this Ken doll is most certainly one of them.

Now, the initial idea of a Ken doll being a Sugar Daddy might seem a tad odd, disturbing, inappropriate. But the reality of the doll’s identity isn’t what you’d think.

Who is Sugar Daddy Ken?

So get this. He’s, in fact, the daddy of Sugar the dog – a cute West Highland Terrier. The doll came with the puppy as an accessory, on a pink lead no less.

Sugar Daddy Ken’s general vibe is this: greying sleek blonde hair, and a Palm Beach chic wardrobe.

The doll was discontinued in 2012, three years after it was launched, and it seems that the suggestive name was a factor. But really, the doll was a different kind of sugar daddy.

Barbie’s manufacturer Mattel even put a statement out about it. “He’s Sugar’s daddy, as a reference to the dog,” a spokeswoman told the New York Post in 2009.

Who will play Sugar Daddy Ken in the Barbie movie?

The doll will be played by Gavin and Stacey star Rob Brydon, who seems very pleased to have been invited to be part of the Barbie world. He tweeted: “Had a great time at the Barbie premiere celebrating my pivotal role as Sugar Daddy Ken. When you go to see this amazing film please don’t blink.”

Margot Robbie has spoken about casting Rob in Barbie, telling Cosmopolitan that it was an “enormous priority”. Rob, meanwhile, sees his casting as a “thank you” after he once sent Margot a “happy birthday” message to her in the voice of his Gavin and Stacey character Uncle Bryn.