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Barbie and Oppenheimer – or Barbenheimer, as the internet has affectionately named them – combined forces to smash the box office, bringing in numbers way ahead of expectations.
Together, the films spurred the fourth biggest box office weekend ever, and the biggest since Avengers: Endgame was released back in 2019.
Per Variety, Barbie brought in an astonishing $155 million domestically, while Oppenheimer scored an equally impressive $80.5 million domestic tally. That makes Barbie the year's biggest debut – a remarkable fact, considering 2023 has seen the likes of Guardians of the Galaxy 3 and Mission: Impossible 7 already.
It also means Greta Gerwig has scored the biggest opening for a movie directed by a woman ever; the record was previously set by Captain Marvel, which was co-directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck.
Globally, Barbie brought in $337 million total, while Oppenheimer scored $174 million. Considering Barbie's budget is put between $128-145 million, and Oppenheimer's at $100 million, both films have been amazing successes.
The weekend marks the biggest of the pandemic era – and, in pre-pandemic times, the only openings to bring in higher totals were Endgame, Avengers: Infinity War, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Considering neither Barbie nor Oppenheimer are sequels – and the latter is an all-original, R rated movie that runs three hours – that's a spectacular result indeed.
Variety notes that "hundreds of thousands" of people showed up this weekend to watch both movies; the meme-machine that is the internet turned this weekend into a cultural event, with "Barbenheimer" becoming shorthand for seeing both movies in a double bill.
Both films are still playing in theaters now if you want to get in on the action – and for much more on both movies, see our pieces about the films below:
- Our interview with Christopher Nolan on crafting Oppenheimer
- Christopher Nolan on Oppenheimer's R-rating
- Christopher Nolan on Oppenheimer's blockbuster status
- Our interview with Cillian Murphy
- Our interview with Matt Damon
- Our interview with Emily Blunt
- All the Barbie Easter eggs
- Greta Gerwig on her Narnia movies
- Greta Gerwig on a potential Barbie sequel
- Why Barbie and Oppenheimer make the perfect double bill
- Barbenheimer: the day cinema stood still
