After legal battles led to their removal from retailer shelves in 2009, MGA Entertainment's Bratz dolls are back, with a noticeable makeover.
"Today they are more like Taylor Swift" than fellow singer Britney Spears, MGA Chief Executive Isaac Larian said Tuesday—changing with the times since Bratz were first introduced in 2001.
"It was a different era. There was no Twitter, there was no Facebook, there was no Instagram," he told CNBC's "Squawk Box."
"It's fascinating how things have changed."
According to Larian, the relaunch of Bratz brings more of a strong, intelligent sensibility to the brand. But he did say the wacky proportions of the original Bratz are here to stay: "They don't look like real people. That's intentional to bring some humor."
MGA is suing Mattel, the company behind Barbie, for $1 billion for alleged trade secret theft—the latest in a legal battle that started in 2004, when Mattel sued MGA.
At their peak, Bratz's wholesale revenue was $500 million versus competitor Barbie's $1.5 billion. As Bratz remerge in the toy market, they are up against Barbie's current wholesale revenue of $900 million.
Starting in August, kids will be able to customize their own Bratz online, with the option to make them engineers or doctors. "They can be anything they want. They are independent. They say who they are."
On "Squawk Box" Tuesday, Larian brought customized Bratz dolls of show anchors Joe Kernen, Andrew Ross Sorkin, and Becky Quick.