411 Box Office Report: Barbie Sets 2023 Record In Opening Weekend, Oppenheimer Scores

Barbenheimer ruled the box office in a massive way this weekend as Barbie set the 2023 opening weekend record and Oppenheimer opened big as well. Barbie opened with $155 million to easily win the weekend, earning the best launch of the year ahead of The Super Mario Bros. Movie’s $146.4 million start. This is a beyond fantastic result for the Greta Gerwig-directed film, blowing past the $100 million to $115 million start that most expected coming into the weekend, and more than double the conservative $75 million that Warner Bros. was projecting.

Barbie was exactly the shot in the arm that the box office needed after blockbusters like Indiana Jones and the Dial Of Destiny, The Flash, Elemental and others fell flat. We always knew Barbie was going to do well; the star power of Margot Robbie was drawing a lot of attention to it, and the iconic Mattel doll is enduring for a reason. But these numbers are beyond what just about anyone expected.

We can chalk that up to a strong marketing campaign from Warner Bros. as well as the aforementioned ”Barbenheimer” effect, with audiences anticipating the showdown between the two films. Tom Cruise raised the stakes earlier this summer when he encouraged audiences to support both movies opening weekend, something audiences complied with. It marks the highest domestic opening for a film directed by a woman, surpassing Captain Marvel’s $153.4 million opening in 2019.

It certainly doesn’t hurt that the film is getting a very positive reception; critics love the film at a 90% aggregated score on Rotten Tomatoes. And audiences agree with an A CinemaScore and a 90% RT audience rating. The anticipation was high from moviegoers and by and large it has delivered. And Warner Bros. is breathing a sigh of relief considering how much they needed this film to deliver after The Flash and Shazam! Fury of the Gods bombed.

Barbie is also scoring big overseas, where it has added a stellar $182 million for a $337 million worldwide total. And unlike most of the flailing blockbusters this summer, that’s a hit for the studio as the budget was “only” $128 million. Like any blockbuster, Barbie is likely looking at drops as the weeks go on, but as it stands right now it’s hard to imagine it doing less than $400 million domestically – and it could go much higher.

The most impressive part of this is how Barbie didn’t hurt Oppenheimer at all, with the Christopher Nolan film also beating its expectations. The J. Robert Oppenheimer biopic started with $80.5 million, well above the expected $60 million start. The film scored the third-best start of Nolan’s career, behind only The Dark Knight Rises ($160.9 million) and The Dark Knight ($158.4 million).

Oppenheimer is, much like Barbie, benefitting from both the Barbenheimer Effect (obviously) and strong hype. The film earned a 94% RT aggregated score, an A CinemaScore, and a 94% RT audience rating. It will surprise few people that Barbie was the strong choice for women (71% of the film’s audience) and guys went for Oppenheimer (65%).

Still, one demographic wouldn’t have carried Oppenheimer any more than it would have carried Barbie and both are performing fantastically across demos. Oppenheimer has added a fantastic $93.7 million overseas for $174.2 million worldwide in its start. It has a higher budget than Barbie at $180 million, but it still looks likely to make its way to profit with a probable $250 million domestic total and strong results overseas. Long story short: it’s a good weekend for original, non-sequel IP.

Speaking of which, Sound of Freedom continues to deliver as it was down just 26% in its third weekend to $20.2 million. The thriller has pushed its totals now to an eye-popping $124.7 million domestically, a fantastic result that already has it at 4.57 times its opening weekend in just three weeks. It goes without saying that this film is a massive hit and one that is turning a lot of heads. We still don’t know the budget, but this is a massive hit for Angel Studios and should be able to close out with $175 million at the very least.

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part 1 took a bit of a hit in its second weekend in the face of the one-two punch of Barbie and Oppenheimer, down 64% to $19.5 million. That’s the franchise’s biggest second-weekend slip to date. Dead Reckoning is now at $118.8 million domestically and $370.9 million – good numbers out of context, but the $290 million budget means that this film is going to have to stretch a bit to become a hit. The film is now looking at around $175 million domestic, and will need to push itself a bit harder on the international front.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny eased 45% in its fourth weekend to $6.7 million. The adventure blockbuster is still on a path to losing money with $159 million domestically and $335 million worldwide against a huge $300 million budget. The film is aiming for around $175 million for its final domestic gross.

Insidious: The Red Door was down 50% in its third weekend to take in $6.5 million. The horror franchise entry is now at $71 million domestically and $155.8 million worldwide, putting it on course to be the highest grossing film in the franchise. It should be able to close out at around $85 million domestically, a money maker against a budget of just $16 million.

Elemental continues to truck along as it grossed $5.8 million, down just 36% from last weekend. The Pixar film has shown more strength than anyone expected week to week and even if it is still losing some money against its $200 million budget, those loses will be fairly minimized now. The film has now grossed $137.2 million domestically and $356.6 million worldwide and should close out domestically at around $150 million to $155 million.

Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse was down 53% in its eighth weekend to bring in $2.8 million. The animated sequel is now at $375.2 million domestically and $675.4 million worldwide, and it’s still aiming at $380 million in US. The budget was $100 million, making this a big hit for Sony.

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts finally took a hit, dropping 67% in its seventh weekend with $1.1 million. The action film is now up to $155.6 million domestically and $423.8 million worldwide against a $195 million budget. It won’t be a hit and will end its run with around $160 million stateside.

No Hard Feelings closed out the top 10, down 67% in its fifth weekend to bring in $1.1 million. The comedy has now grossed $49.2 million domestically and $82.6 million worldwide to date. It should finish around $54 million domestically. The budget was $45 million.

Next weekend will see Barbie and Oppenheimer continue to reign, with the sole wide release being Disney’s Haunted Mansion which is looking at around $25 million to $30 million.

BOX OFFICE TOP TEN (Three-Day Domestic Numbers)
1. Barbie – $155 million ($155 million total, $337 million WW)
2. Oppenheimer – $80.5 million ($80.5 million total, $174.2 million WW)
3. Sound Of Freedom – $20.1 million ($124.7 million domestically, $124.7 million WW)
4. Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part 1 – $56.2 million ($118.8 million total, $370.8 million WW)
5. Indiana Jones and the Dial Of Destiny – $12 million ($159 million total, $335 million WW)
6. Insidious: The Red Door – $13 million ($71 million domestically, $155.8 million WW)
7. Elemental – $8.7 million ($137.2 million total, $356.6 million WW)
8. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse – $6.1 million ($375.2 million total, $675.4 million WW)
9. Transformers: Rise of the Beasts – $3.4 million ($155.6 million total, $423.8 million WW)
10. No Hard Feelings – $3.3 million ($49.2 million total, $82.6 million WW)