July 21 is the most important day for cinema in 2023. The main competitors enter the rental at the same time
The main film event of the summer and, possibly, the whole of 2023 will take place on July 21 – Greta Gerwig’s Barbie and Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer will be released in theaters simultaneously. Both films are expensive and massive, both accompanied by massive marketing campaigns. Both directors have an army of fans, in both films there are stars of the first magnitude.
The official premiere of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” will not take place in Russia either on July 21 or anytime soon.
After the start of a full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, Hollywood studios left the Russian market. Over the next year, Russian cinemas built a whole system of “parallel distribution”, most often receiving copies of films with Russian dubbing from Kazakhstan.
However, by the summer of 2023, the situation had changed, according to data “Kinopoisk”, because of the boycott of the Kazakh company WesternRus. Therefore, the first Hollywood summer premieres like The Flash and Transformers were not released in Russian cinemas even unofficially.
It is not known whether Russian cinema chains will receive a copy of Barbie and Oppenheimer later in a “shadow” way. Digital release dates for both tapes have not yet been set, but if the films live up to the expectations of the creator studios, the films will not be released on streaming until autumn.
The films seem diametrically opposed: Barbie, starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, is about a fictional doll land where something has gone wrong. “Oppenheimer” with Cillian Murphy and Emily Blunt tells the story of the life of an American physicist who developed nuclear weapons and changed the real world.
Trailer “Barbie”
Warner Bros. Pictures
Trailer “Oppenheimer”
Universal Pictures
The closer the premiere, the more difficult it is to hide from jokes and memes about “Barbiheimer”
Here are just a few memes about “Barbiheimer” – this is the name of the general narrative in which both major premieres of the summer ended up.
A reference to the album cover for The Beatles’ Abbey Road, taken at the Abbey Road junction in London
A reference to the cover of Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here” album, shot at Warner Bros. Studios.
“I explained the Barbiheimer phenomenon to my father, and he said:“ What if you photoshop a nuclear mushroom to Margot Robbie’s hair? Maybe it will go viral on social media.” Like if you agree with my father.”
Why “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” come out on the same day is anyone’s guess. But there is a popular fan theory
The directors and Hollywood studios that produce Barbie (Greta Gerwig and Warner Bros.) and Oppenheimer (Christopher Nolan and Universal) have never explained why the two biggest movie premieres of the summer hit screens on the same day.
There are several logical explanations for this decision. For both potential hits, midsummer is important time slot that can bring big profit. And the premiere of “Oppenheimer” is scheduled as close as possible to the day when took place the world’s first test of a nuclear weapon (July 16, 1945).
This is not the first collision at the box office diametrically opposed pictures. Moreover, so already been with Nolan’s Batman thriller The Dark Knight, which was released on July 18, 2008, simultaneously with the film adaptation of the musical Mamma Mia! by ABBA songs.
Of course, the audience also had conspiracy theories. The main (and not officially confirmed) fan version is that Warner Bros. By scheduling the premiere of “Barbie” on the same day, she wanted to take revenge on Nolan for breaking off relations with the studio after 20 years of working together.
The point is that the director criticized the corporation’s decision to release films during the pandemic at the same time in film distribution and on the HBO Max streaming service. Then Nolan said that he did not see any economic sense in this, stopped working with Warner Bros. And concluded deal with Universal.
“Oppenheimer” and “Barbie” do not seem to interfere with each other at the box office. Rivalry only helps everyone
Christopher Nolan evades, declaring the benefits of “Barbiheimer” for cinemas and audiences. However, by data Insider sources, in fact, the director was upset because of the premiere of “Barbie”, scheduled for the same day. According to the publication, an unnamed cinema community even tried to convince Universal to postpone the release of their film to another date, but to no avail.
Judging by statements insiders, discussions in social networks and open statistics search engines, “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” only help each other. “Every time a new Barbie trailer comes out, Oppenheimer is trending.” told The New York Times analyst Robert Mitchell, who works in the film industry.
Who exactly will collect more money at the box office will become clear only a few weeks after the premiere, but judging by first forecasts, in the opening weekend, “Barbie” in the US and Canada alone will earn about 100 million dollars, and “Oppenheimer” – about 50 million. At the same time, Gerwig’s film cost Warner Bros. at $145 million (excluding marketing costs), Nolan’s painting cost Universal $100 million (also not including advertising costs). At the same time, Oppenheimer has a slight advantage – this film will be released in Vietnam (Barbie was banned there for political reasons).
The actors of “Oppenheimer” and “Barbie”, it would seem, should be competitors. But they support each other
Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie have already bought Oppenheimer tickets and shared it on social media to support the film industry after the pandemic.
Greta Gerwig and Margot Robbie with tickets to Oppenheimer and other big movie premieres of the summer
Viewers were hoping for similar photos from Christopher Nolan’s film crew, but didn’t get it.
“Christopher Nolan is somewhere in Ireland trying to convince Cillian Murphy to leave his house, buy Barbie tickets and take a picture.”
However, the actors who played in Oppenheimer are also going to see Barbie, and Cillian Murphy is even intends to go for both pictures on 21 July. The actor said:
It’s just great for the film industry and for the audience that we have two great films from great directors coming out on the same day.
The creators of Barbie, meanwhile, are well aware that some of Nolan’s fans and other potential viewers are not only indifferent, but also hate the Mattel doll – and are trying to convince them. For example, in the first teaser of the picture with Margot Robbie was a reference to “A Space Odyssey” by Stanley Kubrick, and in one of the trailers assertedthat the movie is meant even for those who can’t stand Barbie.
The Barbiegamer has spawned an endless amount of creativity on social media. Just look at these fan posters
Memes and art about “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” – just darkness. Here are the coolest
Barbie: “My product was first launched in Japan.” Oppenheimer:
Me on the day of the premiere of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer”
Map of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” voters in the USA
Shot from the trailer of the film “Pretenders”
Margot Robbie’s favorite meme is about viewers who are going to Barbie and Oppenheimer
One of the most popular memes is about the audience of both films. He’s the best and Margot Robbie like her confessed “BBC”.
“Four tickets to Oppenheimer and Barbie, please.”
“Ticket for Oppenheimer and Barbie, please”
“Seven Oppenheimer tickets and seven more Barbie tickets for my friend. And damn it, hurry up.”
The question “what to watch” probably does not exist. Harder to figure out what to watch first?
Many viewers are going to see “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” on the same day and for several months they arguein what order to do it. Movie theaters now often look like this.
Barbie vs Oppenheimer rivalry will be remembered for decades
Discussions in the media and social networks unfold V mostly because of the theme of the films and the mood with which you want to leave the cinema.
“Those who are going to see Barbie first are acting wildly. Breakfast is black coffee and a cigarette, then an Oppenheimer around 11:00, then mimosa brunch. “Barbie” – around 18-19, then for dinner and to the club “
“They say you can watch Barbie and Oppenheimer in any order. It’s a lie. Start with “Barbie” and when Ken starts singing, go to “Oppenheimer”. At the first nude scene, go back and watch Barbie until the end. Then watch Oppenheimer.”
However, it is not worth imagining that “Barbie” is only a light and light-hearted comedy, and “Oppenheimer” is an exclusively dark and depressing thriller. And Nolan’s film about the fate of mankind is not without jokes, and Margot Robbie’s baby doll reflects on the fear of death. The situation is perfectly described by a joke about the situation due to which Barbie was banned in Vietnam.
“One of these two films is currently causing international conflict”
As for the viewing order, Meduza, unfortunately, cannot offer the best option yet (we haven’t seen the films ourselves yet). But there is a recommendation from Barbie herself (Margot Robbie): “I will start my day by watching Barbie, then immediately go to Oppenheimer, and then back to Barbie.”
