‘Barbie’ earns $1 billion at the box office, setting a record

The thundering «yes» to the billion-dollar query comes from «Barbie.» According to official Warner Bros. projections, Greta Gerwig’s blockbuster has already made an amazing $1.03 billion worldwide in just three weeks of release. Gerwig is now the first female director of a movie worth $1 billion who works alone.

Three further billion-dollar blockbusters that shared co-directing credit with women were «Captain Marvel» ($1.1 billion), «Frozen» ($1.3 billion), and «Frozen 2» ($1.45 billion), all of which were created by Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck.

After only 17 days of release, «Barbie» has reached the coveted milestone and is the eighth film from Warner Bros. to do so in the studio’s 100-year history. That record was previously held by «Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2» at 19 days.

Goldstein and Andrew Cripps, head of international distribution, acknowledged as much in a press release, admitting they are not frequently «rendered speechless by a film’s performance.» But Barbillion, as they’ve christened the box office milestone, has «blown even our most optimistic predictions out of the water.»

«Barbie» has held the top spot at the box office for three straight weekends because to zeitgeist-shattering excitement, despite opposition from «Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem,» «Meg 2: The Trench,» and «Oppenheimer.» It has now surpassed «The Super Mario Bros. Movie,» which grossed $574 million domestically and $1.35 billion globally, to become the second-highest earning film of 2023.

«Barbie» demonstrates that audiences are still eager to get off their sofas to enjoy worthwhile productions and distinctive shared experiences. Large and small movie theaters alike reported record ticket sales in July as pink-clad crowds flocked to the movies.