Per Variety, Barbie earned $26 million domestically on Jul. 24, marking the highest-grossing Monday for Warner Bros. in history. The previous Monday high was set by Nolan's The Dark Knight, with the 2008 sequel to his eponymous trilogy earning $24 million. Following its first four days in theaters, Barbie has far exceeded box-office expectations, earning over $382 million worldwide on a budget of up to $145 million.
The latest box-office achievement by Barbie further intertwines the film with Nolan considering the Warner Bros./Mattel Films title is directly battling the director's new biographical thriller, Oppenheimer, for box-office supremacy following their shared release date. "Barbenheimer" has been a revelation for the film industry, scoring post-pandemic record turnouts for AMC during opening weekend and getting some of Hollywood's biggest names to come out and watch both movies, from Tom Cruise to Quentin Tarantino. Nolan himself has also welcomed Barbie's competition and how it's created a "healthy marketplace."
Additionally, Nolan has long been associated with Warner Bros., mainly due to the success of his The Dark Knight trilogy, with the trio of action-adventure classics earning $2.5 billion worldwide for the studio in ticket sales. Nolan, who left Warner Bros. in 2021, made Oppenheimer with Universal Pictures, with his latest movie starring Cillian Murphy earning $95 million domestically and over $182 million globally so far on a $100 million budget. Nolan was recently linked to a Warner Bros. return, with the studio hoping to bring him back following the disappointing results of the day-and-date release strategy by HBO Max.
Starring Margot Robbie as the titular fashion doll, Barbie has been praised for its social commentary and visual spectacle, with the movie scoring a 90% critical rating and 90% audience score via Rotten Tomatoes. Also featuring Ryan Gosling, Kate McKinnon, John Cena, Dua Lipa, Will Ferrell, and Helen Mirren, the star-laden effort could yet spark a sequel, with Robbie recently confirming behind-the-scenes talks about a follow-up.
Barbie was initially announced in 2009 and first had Amy Schumer in the eponymous role before she exited the project due to creative differences. Warner Bros. acquired the rights to Barbie in 2018 and began development soon thereafter. Mattel Films plans to build on the success of Barbie with further features based on their toy intel including a J.J. Abrams-produced Hot Wheels movie and a Barney film starring Daniel Kaluuya.
Barbie is now showing in theaters across North America.
Source: Variety
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