It's official. Frozen's world domination is now complete.
Toys from Disney's mega-hit Frozen have claimed the top spot among girls on the National Retail Federation's 2014 Holiday Top Toys Survey. Barbie, who has dominated this survey, long-remaining at No.1 every year throughout this list's 11-year history, is now relegated to the first loser's spot at No.2. Don't let your plastic tears ruin your painted-on makeup, girl.
About 20 percent of parents plan to buy merch from Frozen for their daughters, according to this survey conducted by the world's largest retail trade association. The survey found that nearly 17 percent of parents planned on purchasing Barbie products as gifts this holiday season.
This has not been a great couple of weeks for Barbie. The doll's impact on girls' self-image and confidence has come into question lately, even more so than usual, with a Barbie with more realistic features and a book's sexist representation of Barbie as a computer engineer making the rounds on the Internet.
This is also another setback for Mattel, the company that owns Barbie. Worldwide sales for Barbie decreased 21 percent in the most recent quarter, according to Bloomberg News. The stock for Mattel also declined 34 percent this year through Nov. 24.
At the same time, it's no secret that Frozen has achieved monumental success since it hit theaters on Nov. 27, 2013. The movie has grossed $1.2 billion worldwide to date. The movie also spawned a best-selling soundtrack, countless parodies of the hit song "Let It Go," a Disney On Ice spectacular, an upcoming short and talks of a stage adaptation. Frozen cannot be escaped in the current world we live in, so it's no surprise that kids want to get their hands on some merch from this movie this holiday season.
You could also argue that Frozen sends a very different message about self-worth and femininity than Barbie. While Barbie has long been lambasted for teaching girls there's a certain way to look and act as a woman in this world, many have applauded Frozen for its seemingly feminist point-of-view with two sisters working together to save the day. Parents might prefer that their daughters break from the Barbie mold and learn from the strong yet imperfect personalities and experiences of Frozen's Anna and Elsa.
However, as Jezebel points out, Mattel sells Frozen products in addition to Barbie, so the company will actually be reaping the benefits from both of these top-selling toys. That is until 2016 when Hasbro gets the license. Then Mattel might be in trouble.
