Barbie Is Already Setting Box Office Records
With Barbenheimer hype at an all-time high, we knew that the box office numbers over the weekend would be astronomical as both Greta Gerwig’s Barbie and Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer made their way into theaters. While it was hotly debated as to which title would come out on top during opening weekend, Variety reports that, so far, Barbie is cashing in at the bank, with a Thursday and Friday earning of $70.5 million total. Trailing behind, Oppenheimer nabbed $33 million with sales in the same two days.
Barbie launched with the largest opening weekend of 2023, bringing in $70.5 million on pace for a $150 million domestic opening.
Barbie’s sales shouldn’t come as quite a surprise when you note the major differences between Gerwig and Nolan’s films. On one side, you have the colorful and light-hearted tale of Mattel’s doll in what has become the character’s first live-action feature. While Gerwig and many of the cast members have teased that the film will open up discussions about the deeper themes in the script, on no planet does it compare to the dark and possibly depressing take of Nolan’s biographical (essentially disaster) drama.
Essentially, Barbie is more of a welcoming production for all ages over Oppenheimer, which is more likely to draw in specifically an older crowd. Nonetheless, considering that the Inception and Dark Knight trilogy filmmaker’s latest piece is a three-hour film about a physicist, the numbers are still incredible for its first few days in cinemas. From here, it’s only up for both films as the opening weekend is only halfway over, with plenty of audiences flocking to theaters to catch one or both of the films.
Although Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse blew up the box office at the beginning of the summer, Barbie has already drop-kicked it out of the way with earnings. What’s more, is that Gerwig’s pink-filled film is on track to mark itself down in history as being the biggest opening weekend earner for a feature helmed by a female director. Currently holding onto the title is Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck’s Captain Marvel, with Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman falling just behind.
Barbie is the largest opening for director Greta Gerwig and second for Margot Robbie only behind Suicide Squad.
In Barbie, Margot Robbie stars as (one of) the titular dolls living in the vibrantly gorgeous Barbie Land. When she’s kicked out of the utopia for not living up to societal standards, she goes on a journey alongside Ryan Gosling’s Ken, that takes her into the real world, where she learns that everything isn’t as perfect as it’s been made out to be.
Both Barbie and Oppenheimer boast all-star casts, with Greta Gerwig’s latest feature also starring the likes of John Cena, Dua Lipa, Issa Rae, Alexandra Shipp, Simu Liu, Kate McKinnon, Will Ferrell, Helen Mirren, Hari Nef, Michael Cera, Nicola Coughlan, Sharon Rooney, Emma Mackey, Rhea Perlman, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Scott Evans, Ana Cruz Kayne, and more.
In the Barbie/Oppenheimer duel, both movies are winners, with Christopher Nolan‘s R-rated historical piece bringing in $33 million.
With Barbie off to an explosive start at the box office, there’s no telling how far the film will go when it comes to becoming the knock-out hit that it’s always been expected to be. With tickets selling out around the world, you’ll want to secure your seats for Greta Gerwig’s latest production today.
