Greta Gerwig has reason to celebrate as her latest creation, “Barbie,” cruises into the elite billion-dollar movie club, making it a global sensation within just three weeks of its theatrical release. This achievement not only propels the film into the billion-dollar league but also sets a new record for female directors, surpassing Patty Jenkins, the director of “Wonder Woman. “Barbie,” directed and co-written by Greta Gerwig, has continued its remarkable box office run, adding an additional $53 million from 4,178 North American theaters this weekend, according to studio estimates.
The film, led and produced by Australia’s Margot Robbie, has held the top position at the box office for three consecutive weeks, and its impressive performance shows no signs of slowing down. Warner Bros has boldly stated that the film will cross the one billion-dollar mark before the end of the day.
Distribution chiefs at Warner Bros expressed their astonishment at the film’s performance, with Jeff Goldstein and Andrew Cripps, who oversee domestic and international distribution for the studio, stating, “As distribution chiefs, we’re not often rendered speechless by a film’s performance, but ‘Barbillion’ has blown even our most optimistic predictions out of the water.”
In the history of modern box office, only 53 movies have crossed the billion-dollar threshold (without adjusting for inflation), and “Barbie” now stands as the highest-grossing film directed by a woman, surpassing “Wonder Woman’s” global total of $821.8 million.
Three movies co-directed by women remain ahead of “Barbie” in the billion-dollar club, including “Frozen” ($1.3 billion) and “Frozen 2” ($1.45 billion), both co-directed by Jennifer Lee, and “Captain Marvel” ($1.1 billion), co-directed by Anna Boden.
New competition emerged over the weekend with the release of the animated, PG-rated “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem” and the Jason Statham shark sequel, “Meg 2: The Trench,” both fiercely vying for the second-place spot alongside Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer,” also in its third weekend. Ultimately, “Meg 2” managed to secure second place with an opening weekend of $30 million from 3,503 locations, while “Oppenheimer” settled for third place, adding $28.7 million to its North American total, which now stands at $228.6 million.
