‘Barbenheimer’s’ Global Box Office Battle: How the Two Blockbusters Are Performing in Countries Around the World

The dual release of Greta Gerwigs Barbie and Christopher Nolans Oppenheimer on July 21 has restored the box office to its pre-COVID glory, and the effects have been felt around the world.

To date, Barbie a comedy starring Margot Robbie as the iconic doll who goes through an existential crisis has crossed the $1 billion mark worldwide, making Gerwig the first solo female director to do so. But Oppenheimer, in which Cillian Murphy portrays the father of the atomic bomb, has also stood its ground, making over $602 million globally an amazing feat for a three-hour-long film based on a historical figure.

Though Barbie has held tightly onto the No. 1 spot at the domestic box office since its release, Oppenheimer has fought its way to the top in other major markets, including India and Hong Kong. And, both films have stirred up some controversy in various countries due to their themes specifically, Barbies feminist undertones and Oppenheimers depiction of the creation of the bombs that were dropped in Japan oftentimes making one the winner by default.

As both Barbie and Oppenheimer head into their fourth weekends of release, below is a breakdown of how the movies have performed so far in the worlds biggest markets, using industry estimates and data from Box Office Mojo.

Domestic (U.S. and Canada)

Image Credit: ©Warner Bros/Courtesy Everett Collection Barbie has dominated the box office in the United States and Canada, making over $485.4 million as of Aug. 9. Oppenheimer has made almost exactly half of that just before its fourth weekend of release, coming in at $245.5 million.

China China, which is culturally remote from the Barbie-doll phenomenon and its western standards of beauty, initially shunned “Barbie.” But after opening poorly – fifth place with just $8.2 million in its opening three days – the film has shown some powers of endurance.

Chinese state media has frequently ridiculed Hollywood for its diversity and inclusiveness efforts, an attitude suggesting that Greta Gerwig and Hasbro’s multiracial, gender-fluid reinterpretation of society stood little chance of major success in the Middle Kingdom. But, in a country where male violence against women is an enduring scourge, “Barbie” has become a trending social media topic and has been quietly embraced by those seeking a more just society. Box office to date is $34 million after 18 days on release.

United Kingdom After three weekends, “Barbie” has grossed $87.5 million and “Oppenheimer” $53.4 million in the U.K. In the process, “Barbie” surpassed “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” ($67.7 million) to become the highest grossing film of the year, with “Oppenheimer” in third place. “Barbenheimer” powered the July box office to $205.1 million. The July box office was 78% higher than June and 27% higher than July 2022.

Mexico

Image Credit: Warner Bros Barbie has also been received better in Mexico, where it has grossed over $48.9 million to date. However, it has recently been overtaken by Meg 2 on the box office charts. Oppenheimer, on the other hand, has made around $15.4 million to date.

Australia The release of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” in synchronized fashion on July 20 led to Australia’s biggest cinema weekend since the pandemic. Both have continued strongly into their third week. “Barbie” has passed A$60 million ($41.1 million), making it the top film of the year to date and Warner Bros.’ highest grossing film ever in the market. “Oppenheimer” has a more than respectable $19.3 million.

Germany Its been a tighter race between Barbie and Oppenheimer in Germany. Barbie has earned $34 million in the country since its release, with Oppenheimer just behind with more than $28.5 million.

South Korea

Image Credit: ©Universal/Courtesy Everett Collection Korea was on Robbie’s promo tour and the country was among the first to open “Barbie” (July 19). But the film opened meekly against decent local competition and has not revived $3.89 million after nearly three weeks in cinemas counts as a flop. Searching for an explanation, commentators have suggested that feminism is a dirty world in male-dominated Korea. Korean society is arguably the most hierarchical in the world and those who question the status quo are considered troublemakers.

Korean audiences, who typically embrace top quality acting performances, may find “Oppenheimer” more interesting. It releases on Aug. 15.

France Barbie fever has also reached France, with Gerwigs film grossing $29.3 million so far. However, the French who tend to appreciate darker films than the average moviegoer are also enjoying Oppenheimer, making it a close second with over $26.5 million earned in the country as of last weekend.

Japan There remains no current release date for “Oppenheimer” in Japan, which suffered the nuclear bombing discussed in the film.  

“Barbie” is set to release on Friday (Aug. 11), but sensitivities have been stirred by distributor Warner Bros. apparent endorsement of fan-created “Barbenheimer” memes that had made light of nuclear detonations. In an unusual step, Warner Japan publicly criticized its U.S. parent company, eliciting a quick and unconditional apology. It is not clear whether that storm has now dissipated, or whether the chance of “Oppenheimer” ever releasing in Japan has been made more remote.

Spain

Image Credit: ©Warner Bros/Courtesy Everett Collection Barbie reigns in Spain, and has made $26 million in the country, topping the box office charts until last weekends release of Meg 2. To date, Oppenheimer has grossed a similarly impressive $14.4 million.

The Netherlands Its been neck-and-neck in the Netherlands for Barbie and Oppenheimer, with Barbie earning $12.32 million so far and Oppenheimer taking in $13 million. But, Oppenheimer has topped the box office charts for the past couple of weeks.

Brazil Barbie has highly outperformed Oppenheimer in Brazil, earning $39.5 million in the country as of Aug. 7, while Oppenheimer has picked up only $10.3 million.

Hong Kong

Image Credit: Melinda Sue Gordon Hong Kong, a market where Hollywood and local-Cantonese films are typically the biggest draws, got “Barbenheimer” on July 20, like Australia, but had a different reaction. “Oppenheimer” has reached $6.9 million, while “Barbie’s” cultural references have not fully resonated. It has $3.67 million to date.

India India is perhaps the biggest market where “Oppenheimer” has outgrossed “Barbie.” It is also the only major market where official and reliable box office numbers are hard to come by. Despite a sex scene featuring a line from Hindu holy scripture “Bhagavad Gita” that raised some hackles, “Oppenheimer” opened in pole position in a market where Hollywood has just a 10% market share with the audience preferring local fare. After three weekends, per Box Office Mojo, “Oppenheimer” has $17 million in India.

There are no official numbers available for “Barbie,” but informed industry estimates place the India gross at $5.8 million, a third of “Oppenheimer.” While the performance of “Barbie” is respectable in a market where the brand and the doll has nowhere near the kind of cachet it enjoys elsewhere, the success of “Oppenheimer” is harder to decode.

As producer Siddharth Roy Kapur, former head of Disney India who has also served as the president of the Producers Guild of India, observed in a recent interview with Variety: “Oppenheimer” broke all the rules” as a “non-sequel, non-IP that holy grail of pure cinema.”

United Arab Emirates Oppenheimer topped the box office in the United Arab Emirates for the first two weekends after its release, only taken down by Meg 2s release last weekend. So far, the film has grossed an impressive $6.6 million in the country.

Barbie just released in the UAE on Thursday, so its too early to know how the films debut went over. After a release date was originally set for July 21, Barbie faced delays in the UAE and Saudi Arabia over edits the region wanted to make allegedly pertaining to LGBTQ-related themes. Films releasing in the region are often cut to align with its conservative ideals regarding sex, homosexuality and religious issues. If the studio is unwilling to make these edits, then the film can be banned in the region, which happened recently with Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse due to the appearance of a Protect Trans Lives flag.

Poland

Image Credit: ©Universal/Courtesy Everett Collection Though Barbie has made more than Oppenheimer in Poland, having earned $10.9 million so far, Oppenheimer creeped up to the No. 1 spot at the box office for the weekend of Aug. 4. It earned a slightly higher $1.147 million compared to Barbies $1.144 million last weekend, suggesting a potential sea change in the countrys box office behavior. In total, Oppenheimer has made $7.1 million in Poland thus far.

Colombia Colombia has embraced Barbie, which has earned $8.5 million in the country so far, much of which was made during the movies stellar $4.4 million opening. Oppenheimer has made $2.67 million as of last weekend.

Saudi Arabia Oppenheimer has done extremely well in Saudi Arabia, having grossed $10.2 million so far. The historical drama has topped the countrys box office in all three weekends of its release.

However, as in the UAE, Barbie was just released on Thursday after facing a potential delay, allegedly due to its LGBTQ and feminist themes. Only time will tell if the film will catch up with Oppenheimer, though its action and animation-leaning box office history suggests that it may not.

New Zealand

Image Credit: Warner Bros. Like in Australia, Barbie took off in New Zealand, topping the box office charts for all three weekends of its release and grossing over $6.2 million so far. Oppenheimer has also done well, though it has only earned roughly half of Barbies total, making $2.9 million in the country so far.

Turkey Oppenheimer is outperforming Barbie in Turkey, earning $5.2 million to date compared to Barbies $3.19 million. Though Barbie debuted on top with a $1.5 million opening, Oppenheimer has held the No. 1 spot on the box office charts for the past two weekends.