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If you were a kid in the early 2000s, there are probably a handful of events that stand out in your memory. You may remember George W. Bush being the president. Or perhaps you remember the 2004 Super Bowl when Justin Timberlake ripped off Janet Jackson’s shirt, and your parents covered your eyes. But, one major event that may have slipped your mind until recently is the release of Uglydolls in 2001. Ringing a bell?
Personally, I remember when Uglydolls first appeared in stores like it was yesterday. Before Uglydolls, every toy was designed to be as cute or as glamorous as possible. My Little Pony toys had adorable faces and rainbow-colored manes. American Girl dolls were made in the image of cute toddlers from varying cultures. And Bratz dolls, the edgiest toys of the time, were designed to be pint-sized glamor girls and to breed a generation of materialistic nightmares. Anyway, sometime in 2001, a very different toy began appearing on store shelves. The Uglydolls had snaggled teeth, missing eyes, lopsided antennae, and were all-around…well… ugly.
But something about Uglydolls was lovable and endearing. Perhaps these toys subtly sent the message that we should embrace our imperfections and that unattainable images of beauty (such as those perpetuated by Barbie dolls) weren’t the best things to be showing our children. Whatever it was about Uglydolls, these toys enjoyed an explosion of popularity that never really tapered off. There are still thousands of Uglydoll enthusiasts around the world, and there was even an animated musical film made about Uglydolls back in 2019.
So, in honor of these adorably ugly toys, let’s take a look back at the history of Uglydolls and how they nestled into our hearts. And remember that it’s beautiful to be ugly.
The Invention of Uglydolls
The concept for Uglydolls was conceived by the married couple of David Horvath and Sun-Min Kim. Horvath is a native of Summit, New Jersey (a stone’s throw from my own birthplace), and Kim is a native of South Korea.
Horvath was born into the toy industry as his mother worked as a designer for the major toy corporation Mattel. Horvath loved to play with the unique prototypes that his mother would bring home from work, and it was clear to Horvath early on that he would dedicate his life to the creative arts.
Horvath also liked to draw and eventually decided to study illustration at the Parsons School of Design in New York City. It was during his studies at Parsons that he first met Sun-Min Kim.
Kim was born in Seoul, South Korea, but moved to the United States to study design. As a child, she loved to build dollhouses from cardboard and clay; it was always clear that she was creatively gifted. However, after the 9/11 attacks in New York City, Kim’s parents urged her to return to South Korea. She decided to return to her birth country and left David Horvath heartbroken and alone in the United States.
Horvath didn’t give up on their romance, though. He continued to pen love letters to Kim and send them to South Korea. In many of these letters, Horvath would draw little characters. One of these characters (who he named Wage) was a strange blobby monster with triangular teeth and an odd grin. Kim loved the character and decided that she would sew a one-foot-tall plush doll of the character to give to Horvath for Christmas.
When Horvath received the doll via mail, he immediately took it to Eric Nakamura, the owner of the Los Angeles-based Asian pop culture store Giant Robot, and Nakamura agreed to stock the toys on his shelves. Of the first time that he saw the Uglydoll, Nakamura said, “The prototype had great energy and didn’t ask too much in terms of analyzing it as a form or design concept. It was just easy to like.
Kim, who was still living in South Korea, sewed a batch of 20 dolls to line the shelves of Giant Robot. That batch of dolls sold out in just two days, and that’s when Kim and Horvath knew that they were onto something big. Over the next 18 months, Kim sewed over 1,500 Uglydolls while Horvath created the tags, developed a website, and searched for boutique toy stores where they could stock their creations. Thus, the Uglydoll brand was born.
The Uglydoll Revolution
Over the years, Horvath and Kim created more and more characters to add to the Uglydoll family. Some of these characters included Babo, Cinko, Ice Bat, Jeero, OX, Target, Tray, Wedgehead, and many others. Each character comes with a mini biography on its tag that helps the owner get to know their Uglydoll a little better.
Horvath and Kim’s creations were so beloved by consumers that their company continued to grow year after year. Before long, Uglydolls were stocked on the shelves of major retail stores like FAO Schwarz and Barneys.
By 2006, the company was doing over $2.5 million in sales. In that same year, Uglydolls were named the specialty toy of the year by the Toy Industry Association of America, which is one of the highest honors that a toy can receive. Then, in 2008, they sold their one-millionth Uglydoll. It’s safe to say that Uglydolls had exploded onto the scene.
However, in 2011, plans were announced to bring the “Uglyverse” from the imaginations of Sun-Min Kim and David Horvath onto the big screen.
The UglyDolls Movie
In 2011, Illumination Entertainment purchased the film rights to the Uglydolls line of toys. Illumination chief Chris Meledandri was set to produce the film, and both David Horvath and Sun-Min Kim were to be signed on as executive producers. However, for years, production of the film never happened.
However, in 2015, it was announced by Variety that an Uglydolls movie was going to be produced by STX Entertainment with Robert Rodriguez as the director. It was then decided that the film would be a musical. And, before long, a ton of A-list celebrities were attached to the project.
By the time the final cast was announced, it had included some of the largest names in the entertainment industry, including Kelly Clarkson, Nick Jonas, Janelle Monae, Blake Shelton, Wang Leehom, Pitbull, Wanda Sykes, Gabriel Iglesias, Emma Roberts, Bebe Rexha, Charli XCX, and Lizzo.
The film follows the journey of Moxy, an Uglydoll living in a hidden universe within a toy factory called Uglyville. This is where all of the deformed toys in the factory are sent to live out their lives. But, Moxy dreams of the “Big World” outside of Uglyville and wants to be loved by a child. Without giving too much away about the UglyDolls movie, Moxy (who’s voiced by Kelly Clarkson) goes on an epic journey with her friends.
The UglyDolls movie was finally released to theaters in 2019 and grossed over $32 million at the box office. To think that the Uglydoll brand started as a little cartoon character drawn on a love letter from the United States to South Korea is mind-blowing and heartwarming.
It’s amazing to see how far Uglydolls have come, and it’s a success story that we can all feel good about. Uglydolls send the message that you should love your imperfections and be proud of who you are. And, if you haven’t seen the UglyDolls movie, it’s streaming on Netflix and HBO Max.
