A sequel to the top-grossing movie of 2023 should be a given, but unproductive contract discussions have put the future of Barbie 2 in peril.

According to Variety, Warner Bros. Discovery chief David Zaslav and Mike De Luca and Pamela Abdy, the co-chairs of the Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group, are attempting to broker a deal with the team behind the original Barbie movie, Greta Gerwig, her husband and writing partner Noah Baumbach, and stars/producers Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, but so far the two sides have not agreed to terms.

Barbie, starring Robbie and Gosling, was the number one movie domestically in 2023 and grossed $1.448 billion globally, and Barbie remains the biggest film to date Warner Bros. has released to date. Sequel talks began back in 2023, with Warner Bros. reportedly making at least seven separate offers to the Gerwig’s team, but none have been accepted.

Gosling’s is the only asking price known right now. He wants $20 million to return as Ken in the role that garnered him a Best Supporting Actor nomination at the Oscars. According to Variety, “the most recent [offer], which came late this spring, is said by a studio source to be the highest Warner Bros. has ever offered for a filmmaking team and its stars (‘life-changing money,’ one source said). Another deal source disputed this benchmark, saying the price of the ‘package,’ the cost of all four, may be historic but individual compensation is not.”

In addition to Variety, The New York Times is also covering the negotiations, and both reported that Zaslav refused to sign off on the talent’s requested deals because they were too expensive. According to Variety, a studio insider said that Zaslav is the only person at WB who doesn’t think the creative team is worth the payout they’re seeking. However, a rep for the studio denied that characterization of Zaslav to The New York Times.

De Luca and Abdy are on a deadline to strike a deal as they have around four months to put a sequel into active development. If that doesn’t happen, the rights to the doll revert to Mattel. If that happens, though Mattel won’t be able to use any part of the 2023 movie should they strike a deal with another studio to create a sequel.

Gerwig and Baumbach are not necessarily reluctant to make a Barbie sequel, according to the reporting. And they have said they have an idea for a sequel, but they did not disclose the concept. The NYT also reported that the couple hasn’t told WB their plans and won’t start working on a script without signed contracts.