MASSIVE OPENINGS FOR BARBS AND OPPS

“Barbenheimer” has exploded at the box office. WBD’s Barbie posted the biggest opening of the year, and Universal’s Oppenheimer topped $80m.

Barbie hit $162m at the box office, topping Sunday's projection of $155m. Oppenheimer pulled in $82.4m after all the ticket stubs were counted.

Barbie posted the biggest single-day gross of the year with Friday's take of $70.8m. The film also pulled in $182m abroad.

The “Barbenheimer” effect—moviegoers creating a double feature out of the two films—helped drive what is expected to land as the fourth-biggest overall weekend ever. It’s the first time, though, such a feat has been achieved without sequels and superheroes.

Barbie, directed by Greta Gerwig, is also the biggest opening weekend ever for a film directed by a woman, topping the Anna Boden-Ryan Fleck-helmed Captain Marvel ($153m in 2019) and Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman ($103m in 2017).

Fans have been hammered with an onslaught of Barbie marketing all year. The activations have been so aggressive and clever that many non-Barbie-affiliated viral moments are turning into memes. On top of that, there's a star-studded soundtrack, and WBD was lucky enough to get the cast to attend a handful of splashy global premieres before the strike canceled activity.

Fans of the Mattel doll are pregaming and postgaming with the Atlantic soundtrack, which is #1 at iTunes and #3 at Apple Music as of early Monday (7/24) morning.

As serious thematically as a movie can get, Oppenheimer is performing like a super-hero film. The three-hour biopic was expected to fetch $50m but not only has it outperformed in the U.S., it took in $93.7m internationally.

All movies playing in the U.S. grossed $302.1m, marking the fourth time the marketplace has topped $300m.