Oppenheimer Star Cillian Murphy Is Happy Barbie Is Competing With His Film
The coinciding release of the Cillian Murphy-starring blockbuster Oppenheimer and the Margot Robbie-starring blockbuster Barbie has sparked the so-called “Barbieheimer” concept on social media, with many planning out a double-feature for these tonally opposite films. It appears that even the man playing Oppenheimer himself will be participating in the double feature along with everyone else.
“I think it’s just great for the industry and for audiences that we have two amazing films by amazing filmmakers coming out on the same day, you can spend the whole day in the cinema – what’s better than that?”
Cillian Murphy on the Barbie/Oppenheimer double-feature
Murphy recently talked to IGN and said he plans on seeing Barbie, saying, “I think it’s just great for the industry and for audiences that we have two amazing films by amazing filmmakers coming out on the same day,” adding, “You can spend the whole day in the cinema – what’s better than that?”
Cillian Murphy is spot on with his assessment, and plenty of people are in agreement with him. Christopher Nolan‘s Oppenheimer will no doubt be a cinematic spectacle in IMAX, especially if you see it on the right screen, and Greta Gerwig’s Barbie looks to be a hilarious satire that will no doubt be a cultural touchstone for 2023.
Both of these filmmakers are operating at the top of their game, and it will be well worth checking out both films in theaters.
Even Cillian Murphy is excited for the social media event of 2023, the Barbie and Oppenheimer competing opening weekend.
Of course, there’s also the matter of which film will end up taking home more money during their opening weekend because this is Hollywood, and money talks, after all.
Projections are indicating that Cillian Murphy’s atomic bomb won’t be able to take out the Barbie dream house and that the Margot Robbie-led picture will end up taking home the #1 box office spot for the weekend. This doesn’t come as too much of a surprise.
No matter how great of a movie Cillian Murphy and Christopher Nolan make, it does have a few disadvantages when it comes to getting butts in theater seats. For one, Oppenheimer is rated R, while Barbie is PG-13.
There’s also the fact that the Mattel toy doll is a massive IP, and the film is a comedy, while Oppenheimer is a historical drama, which inherently has less appeal to theatergoers.
Lots of people are following Cillian Murphy’s advice to see both, Barbie and Oppenheimer, including Tom Cruise.
Of course, that doesn’t mean Cillian Murphy’s Oppenheimer won’t make a ton of money — it just might not take home as many buckets of green as Barbie will. Oppenheimer will also have to contend with the fact that the massive blockbuster Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One will be in theaters for its second weekend, which may draw away some would-be Oppenheimer viewers for its opening weekend.
It’ll certainly be interesting to see how this all plays out, but honestly, people should probably take Murphy’s lead and see both.
Both Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer and Greta Gerwig’s Barbie will be hitting theaters on July 21, so start planning your double feature now. Oppenheimer follows the titular American scientist who led the project to create the atomic bomb and stars Cillian Murphy along with Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Robert Downey Jr, Florence Pugh, Josh Hartnett, Casey Affleck, Rami Malek, and Kenneth Branagh.
Barbie will follow the titular doll as she journeys into the real world and stars Margot Robbie along with Ryan Gosling, America Ferrera, Kate McKinnon, Issa Rae, Rhea Perlman, Hari Nef, Simu Liu, Alexandra Shipp, Dua Lipa, Kingsley Ben-Adir, and Will Ferrell.
