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Come July 21, there will be a summer blockbuster at the box office in the form of Oppenheimer v/s Barbie. Directed by five-time Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer deals with the man considered the father of nuclear weapons. Meanwhile, Barbie is a pretty straightforward title for a movie and is bathed in fantasy. So, when these two very different films get pitted against one another, we get ourselves a battle on fire.
The buzz is so strong that several publications have carried out pieces with estimated numbers the two movies may strike in their opening weekend. Puck News, for instance, stated that the doll-based flick would have a $10-15 million upper hand over Oppenheimer. The Hollywood Reporter, too, pitched the Greta Gerwig directorial to top the commercial window upon premiere.
When Discussing Film on Twitter disclosed this, social media users went wild with their comments. The clear division between the two camps was visible in the remarks.
To note, Oppenheimer is Christopher Nolan’s 12th project as a director. It arrives three years after Tenet. Meanwhile, Gerwig’s 4th directorial is Barbie, and comes five years after her acclaimed film Little Women.
"Barbie will win the box office, but Oppenheimer will get the Oscars": Fans divided over box office clash
Citing “sources with access to various polling services,” The Hollywood Reporter said that Barbie “will win the July 21-23 weekend,” as per preliminary tracking. Without mentioning any number, the publication reported that Oppenheimer might lag behind because of its serious theme, rating, and duration of three hours.
When the pop culture portal Discussing Film made the report official, it left netizens divided. The rift between the two fan bases became very understandable, with both teams putting each other’s favorites for the Oscar race.
Apart from The Hollywood Reporter, Coming Soon (via Puck News) wrote a few days back that the Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling-starrer may pocket roughly $45-55 million on its debut weekend, while its rival Oppenheimer may go for $30-35 million.
Notably, Barbie’s PG-13 rating allows it to have more people at the theaters. At the same time, Oppenheimer's restricted viewing ideally translates to a possible low turnout. But since Nolan’s fan base is massive and fiercely loyal, things can change once the movies hit the cinema halls.
Robbie and Ryan Gosling aside, Barbie has actors like Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings star Simu Liu and ace comedy actor Will Ferrell in the main cast.
Meanwhile, the atomic bomb-based movie is led by Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer. Emily Blunt, Florence Pugh, Matt Damon, Robert Downey Jr., Rami Malek, and Josh Hartnett, among others, form the supporting cast.
Both films are releasing on July 21, 2023.
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