The battle of the blockbusters is almost upon us, and box office projections are finally here! Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer is going against Greta Gerwig’s Barbie, with Christopher McQuarrie’s Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning already taking up space in theaters. The diversity of movies this month is giving fans the option to fill their cups with whichever flavor they like best.
It seems like a tight competition is ahead of everyone, and people are keeping a close eye on which movie will bring home the trophy, at least between Barbie and Oppenheimer, whose rivalry has been creating a buzz on social media for the past few months.
Box Office Tracking Predicts Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer Behind Barbie And Mission: Impossible 7
The latest box office projection is looking a bit hazy for Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer. Considering it is rated R, it will most likely have a limited number of viewers. As per NRG (via Matthew Belloni on Twitter), the box office tracking for Oppenheimer is $43 million, while Barbie is expected to open with $93 million and Mission: Impossible 7 with $68.5 million.
The two biggest tent poles for the month, also called “Barbenheimer”, will give fans the most interesting showdown for the year. Each film has secured its target market, with Barbie focusing on mostly female audiences under the age of 35. Its marketing schemes and advertisement all over social media are also appealing to male viewers.
Oppenheimer, on the other hand, will most likely target older audiences. Still, the $43 million box office projection would mark one of Christopher Nolan’s lowest openings since The Prestige in 2006.
Meanwhile, Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible 7 is already taking advantage of the IMAX screens this week before Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer completely devour the premium theaters. The Cillian Murphy-led film is specifically tailored for IMAX screen viewing, and while everyone looks forward to its critical and commercial success, it is not guaranteed to cross the billion-dollar mark. IMAX tickets are also pricey, so if fans would be willing to shell out a few more bucks to watch it in all its spectacular glory, then it will probably be worth the experience.
The stiff competition brewing between the three highly-anticipated movies is more than enough to revive the art of moviegoing. Since the pandemic, the theater business has experienced drought, and many studios had to face a great loss of income.
Can Oppenheimer Cross The $1 Billion Mark?
Although Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer has a restricted set of viewers, it is not impossible to break the box office record. The film is currently one of the most hyped and talked about titles for the past few months, and if Todd Phillips’ Joker (2019) can achieve that milestone, Oppenheimer also has the potential to set a new record for a hard-R film.
Nolan describes his magnum opus as a horror movie, and those who watched the early screening all felt devastated leaving the theaters. The graphic scenes and extreme visualization might have been too much for some moviegoers. It is most plausible that Oppenheimer will be a critical success, but its attempt to beat Barbie and Mission: Impossible 7 at the box office is one uphill battle.
Oppenheimer and Barbie will arrive on July 21, 2023. Mission: Impossible 7 is now showing in theaters worldwide.
Source: NRG via Matthew Belloni
