Box Office: ‘Barbie,’ in First, ‘Oppenheimer’ Second

July 23rd, 11:40 AM EDT

Updated:

July 23rd, 12:58 PM EDT

Margo Robbie in "Barbie."

MGN via Warner Bros. Pictures

(NEWSnet/AP) — The “Barbenheimer” combination spun box office gold.

Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” and Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” brought moviegoers to theaters in record numbers this weekend, outperforming projections.

“Barbie” claimed the top spot with a massive $155 million in ticket sales from North American theaters from 4,243 locations, surpassing “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” as the biggest opening of 2023. “Oppenheimer" also soared past expectations, taking in $80.5 million from 3,610 theaters in the U.S. and Canada.

It marks the first time that one movie opened with more than $100 million and another movie opened to $80 million or more in the same weekend.

“Mission: Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part I,” which despite strong reviews and a strong opening weekend, fell 64% in its second week.

“Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” each scored well among critics, with 90% and 94% on Rotten Tomatoes, respectively, and audiences who gave both films an A CinemaScore.

Women drove the historic “Barbie” opening, with 65% of the audience, according to PostTrak. Forty percent of ticket-buyers were under age 25 for the PG-13 rated movie.