The two most anticipated releases of the summer, 'Barbie' and 'Oppenheimer' proved that audiences around the world are still eager to go to theaters. However, with more novel stories, away from the already known sequels and live-action of animated classics.
You need only look at the grosses of both feature films (popularly known as 'Barbenheimer') during their first weekend at the box office. The movie starring Margot Robbie based on the well-known Mattel doll, 'Barbie,' pulled in a total of US$337 million worldwide, according to the figure provided by the specialized website Box Office Mojo, which claims that $155 million was grossed from U.S. theaters alone.
This sum far exceeds the $145 million budget for Greta Gerwig's feature film and makes the film the best new release of 2023, surpassing 'Super Mario' which grossed a total of $146 million in its first weekend.
The gross also helped the feature film based on the Mattel doll become the second-best U.S. opening for a film directed by a woman. It is only surpassed by the Marvel Studios film, 'Captain Marvel' which, directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, managed to gross a total of $153 million at the 2019 U.S. box office.
'Oppenheimer,' second most-seen film in theaters
Barbie's competitor 'Oppenheimer' also fared quite well this weekend. According to Box Office Mojo, the latest work by filmmaker Christopher Nolar grossed 175 million worldwide during its first weekend, 80.5 million of which belonged to the domestic box office. It thus becomes the veteran director's third best debut, surpassed only by the two 'Batman: The Dark Knight' films.
'Oppenheimer,' like 'Barbie,' also managed to exceed its budget (of $100 million). In its case, much of its box office performance was due primarily to the director's reputation behind the scenes of the feature, as Universal's president of domestic distribution, Jim Orr, pointed out to Variety:
This is a 1940s period piece. That speaks volumes to the appeal of Nolan and his prowess as a filmmaker. He has an amazing reputation for storytelling in the biggest format possible.
In fact, Nolan's recommended format, Imax, also benefited from its release and $35 million in global grosses for the feature film about the creator of the nuclear bomb came from people who saw the film in Imax. The situation was such that, according to Imax CEO Rich Gelfond, previously unimagined situations were experienced just to see Nolan's work in this format:
Around the world, we’ve seen sellouts at 4 a.m. shows and people traveling hours across borders to see ‘Oppenheimer’ in Imax 70mm. This is a phenomenon beyond compare in Imax, and we’re just getting started.
The 'Barbenheimer' phenomenon will determine the 2023 box office
Also surprising are the figures achieved by both films together, as many people decided to do a double session and watch both feature films. According to the National Association of Movie Theater Owners, a total of 200,000 people in the nation reserved their tickets to see the two films on the same day.
A fact that demonstrates the excitement that still keeps many viewers to go to the theaters that, this weekend, were packed out around the world. So explained the head of film consulting firm Franchise Entertainment Research, David A. Gross: "This is an unequivocally great weekend for moviegoing. ‘Barbie’ and ‘Oppenheimer’ are complementing each other at the box office, not taking audience from each other."
The success has been such that both films have achieved massive theatrical attendance and the phenomenon of the 'Barbenheimer' succeeded this weekend in becoming the biggest collective box office weekend since 2019 as well as the fourth biggest weekend ever behind the releases of 'Avengers: Endgame;' 'Avengers: Infinity War' and 'Star Wars Episode VII: The Force's Awakening.'
The difference, however, is in the stories as they moved away from the sequels we are used to. That, explained National Association of Theatre Owners president and CEO Michael O'Leary, was a determining factor in its box office performance:
Studios gave audiences two uniquely different, smart and original stories that were meant for the big screen. People recognized that something special was happening, and they wanted to be a part of it.
