Barbie made $377m while Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer took home $174m, making ‘Barbenheimer’ biggest box office weekend of 2023 so far.

Greta Gerwig directed Barbie, which made history with a $377m global opening, the biggest for a film directed by a woman. In North America, Barbie claimed top spot with a massive $155m in ticket sales from 4,243 locations. The film surpassed The Super Mario Bros Movie and every Marvel film released this year to become the biggest opening of the year. Barbie also surpassed the opening weekend of Captain Marvel, the previous record-holder. This is a major milestone for Gerwig and for women in Hollywood.

The social media-fuelled fusion

Social media hype for “Barbenheimer” drove moviegoers to theaters. Oppenheimer exceeded expectations with $80.5m debut, Nolan’s best non-Batman start. It’s the first time two films opened to $100m+ and $80m+ in the same weekend.

Internationally, Barbie earned $182 million from 69 territories, contributing to a global weekend total of $337 million. Oppenheimer grossed $93.7 million from 78 territories, even surpassing Barbie in India, for a global total of $174.2 million. In the UK, cinema chain Vue reported that one-fifth of customers saw both films in a double bill on the weekend, which was the biggest for UK cinema ticket sales since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Comeback Weekend of Hollywood

Hollywood has been dreaming of this comeback weekend since the pandemic. There have been big openings and successes, such as Spider-Man: No Way Home, Top Gun: Maverick, and Avatar: The Way of Water, but the fact that two movies are succeeding at the same time is notable.

However, in the background looms disaster as Hollywood studios continue to squabble with striking actors and writers over a fair contract. Barbie and Oppenheimer were the last films on the 2023 calendar to get a massive, global press tour. Both went right up to the 11th hour, squeezing in every last moment with their movie stars. Oppenheimer even pushed its London premiere forward by an hour, knowing that Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, and Cillian Murphy would have to leave to symbolically join the picket lines by the time the movie began.

There have also been protests and political campaigns in support of the striking workers. The future of Hollywood is uncertain, but this weekend’s success is a sign that audiences are still eager to see movies in theaters.

Barbie’s success is a sign that audiences are hungry for films that are directed by women. It is also a sign that Hollywood is finally starting to recognize the talent of female filmmakers