Two weeks ago at the Golden Globe Awards, stand up comedian Jo Koy gave a whole new meaning to bombing a performance. While stand-up comedians are paid to make controversial and slightly uncomfortable jokes, Koy took it too far. The past Golden Globes hosts have been fairly unmemorable, and many were excited to see him take the stage. 

His set was memorable. While he made numerous inappropriate and frankly unfunny jokes, his “Barbie” joke is what has set the internet ablaze.

Koy starts out his set of “Barbie” jokes by admitting it was “weird” for him to feel attracted to a plastic doll. This odd joke was the tip of the iceberg of his misogyny. Demeaning a movie that had a strong message and huge impact on feminism is exactly what he shouldn’t be doing.

But don’t worry! He also had opinions on the content — or lack thereof — of “Barbie,” not just his attraction to a doll. 

Koy starts his joke by praising “Oppenheimer,” which is based on a 721-page Pulitzer Prize-winning book about the “Manhattan Project.” Then of course, the joke goes downhill, “and ‘Barbie’ is on a plastic doll with big boobies.” The camera immediately cuts to the crowd’s negative response. Director Greta Gerwig and star Margo Robbie smile uncomfortably at his brainless joke, while co-star Ryan Gosling looks disgusted.

Ironically, Koy’s description of “Barbie” isn’t inaccurate, just misguided. In response to Koy’s joke, Gerwig told the Hollywood Reporter, “Well technically he isn’t wrong.” She goes on to explain that “Barbie” was the first mass-produced doll with breasts, a stark contrast from the baby dolls that were her predecessors. But Gerwig took the highroad. She smiled, nodded and accepted Koy’s misogyny because her place in male-dominated Hollywood is fragile and conditional. The highest grossing film ever made by a female director was boiled down to boobs, while “Oppenheimer” was endlessly praised.  

The joke was accurate, like Gerwig conceded, but it was also deeply misogynistic. The irony of his joke is that it literally described the whole premise of the “Barbie” movie. While many people may have left the theater after “Barbie” disappointed — myself included — there is depth and meaning to a seemingly foolish movie. 

The function of the writing may go above many peoples heads, and it might seem like a reductive take on fourth wave feminism, but that is the point. I am a huge fan of Gerwig’s previous work and was eagerly awaiting a thought-provoking, layered, subtle feminist take on “Barbie.” That is not at all what the movie was. At first. I was frustrated, and I expected more from Gerwig than the typical “it sucks to be a girl” motif. Later, it occurred to me that “Barbie” wasn’t for expert feminists, academics or film critics. It was a gateway drug, an introduction to the vast world of female liberation.

Gerwig brilliantly served feminism on a silver platter to the masses. She had to do it in a sensitive way, so people couldn’t call her aggressive, angry, crude or anything else we call a woman when she acts like men do. 

Gerwig masked a strong message in pink sparkles, musical numbers and celebrity appearances. To many of us, the message seemed obvious, but I believe the way she portrayed it was quite brilliant. The scene where all the Barbies use Ken’s tactics to trick them into getting Barbieland back showed the idea of double standards in a clear and concise way. 

The “Barbie” movie was for your grandma who grew up thinking feminism was a dirty word, for your friend who thinks feminism means women are superior to men and ideally for men like Koy, who can’t seem to grasp basic feminist ideas. 

“Barbie” is a movie about a doll with plastic boobs because if Gerwig made a three-hour movie about radical intersectional feminism, it wouldn’t have reached the same audiences “Barbie” did. The simple impression “Barbie” has on people is what allows the underlying messages to resonate. The sappy music, gorgeous actresses and mermaid costumes were not an accident. They made feminism understandable, tolerable and likable to the American population.