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This Barbie just broke a major record.
After months ofextensive press,Barbiecore trendsand“Barbenheimer” mania, Greta Gerwig'sBarbiefinally hit theaters on Friday, July 21, and ittotallylived up to the hype. The comedy just broke a major record, becoming the highest-grossing opening weekend for a female-directed movie. According toVariety, the pink-filled flick earned a whopping $155 million in its opening weekend.
That impressive figure allowedBarbieto slip right by the previous record-holder,Captain Marvel($153 million), which was co-directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck. As far as movies directed solely by women,Wonder Womanformerly held the title, after earning $103 million in its opening weekend.
The achievements don't stop there. WithBarbie's sky-high numbers, Gerwig also just earned herself the biggest opening weekend foranymovie of 2023, surpassingThe Super Mario Bros. Movie($146 million).
Leading up to the release ofBarbie, fans had made a meme out of the fact that the colorful fantasy film was being released on the same weekend as Christopher Nolan's historical dramaOppenheimer. The release event was quickly deemed“Barbenheimer,”and fans secured tickets for double features, donning “Barbenheimer” t-shirts and other specially-made merch.
With this collective hype,BarbieandOppenheimermanaged to score the fourth-biggest film overall movie weekend of all time (and the biggest box office weekend since the COVID-19 pandemic).
So far,The Super Mario Bros. Moviestill holds the spot as the highest-grossing movie of 2023, with a little over $574 million, according toBox Office Mojo. Only time will tell ifBarbieis able to beat that number.
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