Anne Hathaway in talks to star in Barbie, replacing Amy Schumer

Anne Hathaway is looking to play one of the most famous women in history. She just happens to be made of plastic.

The Ankler reports she's currently in talks to lead Sony Pictures' live-action Barbie movie, stepping in after Amy Schumer previously dropped out due to "scheduling conflicts". Should she sign, she'd be directed by Australian filmmaker Alethea Jones.

The film, which is set to mix animation and live-action, will apparently follow what happens to Barbie after she gets kicked out of Barbieland for not fitting in.

Her adventures in the real world will eventually lead her to realise that "perfection comes on the inside, not on the outside, and that the key to happiness is belief in oneself, free of the obligation to adhere to some unattainable standard of perfection".

Considering the amount of abuse Schumer received from trolls over her original casting in the part, her involvement felt a little more empowering in terms of challenging Hollywood beauty standards, but Hathaway's smart, thoughtful approach to both her work and the industry at large still makes her a very promising choice.

Sony has been developing the project for a while, and it's clear that the studio is keen to focus on Barbie's long history of female empowerment (come on, the woman managed to be both a doctor, a rock star, and an astronaut all in one lifetime), all while attempting to address head-on its more troubling engagement with ideas of perfection and unattainable beauty ideals.

Barbie is currently set to his UK cinemas 29 June 2018.