A scene from the “Barbie” movie.
Courtesy: Warner Bros.
This Barbie is a box office queen. He’s just Batman.
On Tuesday “Barbie” topped $537 million, making it the highest-grossing domestic movie in Warner Bros. Discovery‘s 100-year history. The film surpassed Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight,” which generated $536 million in 2008, for the title.
The bubblegum pink collaboration between filmmaker Greta Gerwig, Mattel and Warner Bros. has collected more than $1.2 billion at the global box office since its July 21 release.
It is the first billion-dollar film for the newly minted Warner Bros. Discovery, the result of the Warner Media and Discover merger in 2022, and only the second movie released in 2023 to do so. Universal’s “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” has topped $1.3 billion since its April debut.
The success of “Barbie” comes at a time when blockbuster-budgeted films have struggled to connect with moviegoing audiences. Alongside Nolan’s latest feature “Oppenheimer,” which has grossed more than $250 million domestically, “Barbie” proves that moviegoers are still interested in leaving their couches for quality films and unique communal experiences.
The Margot Robbie-led film has been number one at the box office since its debut and is on track to be the highest-grossing film of the year. Box office analysts expect “Barbie” to continue to collect box office receipts in the weeks to come, as it faces limited competition from new releases and rides a wave of positive word of mouth.
Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC.