Actor Simu Liu, who played one of the Kens in the Oscar-nominated film "Barbie," had a revelation when he first read the script.

"...and then we read a scene that calls us out so fully and utterly that I'm like 'Oh yeah. I'm part of the problem. I'm part of the problem'."

Co-written by married couple Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach, the "Barbie" movie puts patriarchy and its gender expectations under the microscope...

using women-run Barbie Land as a foil to the Real World, ruled by men who have a narrow view of what women should be.

LIU: "Really it does the perfect job of trying to teach us something without alienating half of the population, but just saying 'Hey, this is what patriarchy is and by the way it affects everyone'."

The film generated a chart-topping $1.4 billion at global box offices in 2023.

Its cultural impact was deep.

ROME: "Before I saw the movie, I started asking my patients and their moms and dads, when dads came in, what did they think?"

Dr. Ellen Rome is the head of adolescent medicine at Cleveland Clinic Children's Hospital.

Before she sat down to watch the movie, she sought reactions from about 100 tweens, teens and parents who visited her clinic.

"I was expecting a lot of negativity and body negativity and to my surprise, the girls and their mothers and the boys, for the most part, came back saying that they thought the messages were more about body positivity and how Barbie can be anything she wants to be, and how it was a great commentary on some of the misogyny of the world and the patriarchy."

Those messages were also picked up in toy maker Mattel's own consumer research, which showed that 87% viewed the Barbie brand as empowering for girls after the movie's release.

An outside survey by Resume Builder, a website for job seekers, even found that the film improved perceptions of women in the workplace.

And over 60% of men who took the survey said it made them more aware of patriarchy at work.

Actor Ariana Greenblatt, who played a Barbie-skeptical teen in the film, said girls have thanked her for putting a spotlight on the issues they face.

"I think people will look at things differently forever and that is the coolest thing in the world."