Introducing Allan this way initially implies that his primary function in Barbie will be to serve up comic relief on the side, a little slice of understated in a relentlessly bright, shiny world.

Michael Cera plays Allan in Greta Gerwig's "Barbie". There's only one, and he's hilarious. An Allan appreciation post.

Michael Cera as Allan in “Barbie” (Warner Bros.)In a sea of Ken and Barbies, Allan is content with his place in the world as long as everyone’s happy and nice to each other.

Allan is not just a regular doll. He was first marketed as “Ken’s Buddy” and quickly revealed to be a man of complex familial trauma who falls under the pressure of societal expectations ...