Fresh data from movie theaters shows that fans are actually planning to see the highly-anticipated “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” movies on the same day — a five-hour, popcorn-fueled marathon social media has dubbed the “Barbenheimer.”
The world’s largest movie chain, AMC Entertainment, has already sold more than 20,000 double-feature tickets to its AMC Stubs members, according to Variety.
AMC Theatres’ executive VP of worldwide programming, Elizabeth Frank, told the outlet that since Friday, there’s been a 33% increase in the number of moviegoers who have made their own double-feature by purchasing tickets to see both movies on the same day.
“The growing online conversation around seeing both of these incredible films is turning into ticket sales,” Frank told Variety.
Frank added that she’s expecting double-feature sales to surge even more across AMC’s 95 theaters ahead of the films’ release on July 21.
In the UK, major cinema chain Vue is seeing a similar trend.
As of Tuesday, 19% of people who booked tickets to see “Oppenheimer” at one of Vue’s 850-plus screens also bought tickets for “Barbie,” according to Bloomberg.
Alamo Drafthouse, a US-based cinema chain known for serving dinner and drinks during screenings, also said it’s seeing demand for the “Barbenheimer” double feature, including for its private events business that allows customers to rend out screens for corporate events and birthday parties, Bloomberg reported.
Nick Isani, private-event sales manager for the East Coast at Alamo Drafthouse, told the outlet: “The requests to hire out spaces for ‘Barbie’ and ‘Oppenheimer’ double-bills have been coming in for months.”
He added that it’s unique to see such a “significant number” of requests from customers wanting to see the films back to back, especially for movies that are so different.
“Barbie” — Greta Gerwig’s two-hour, PG-13, live-action movie about the world’s most famed doll — is expected to sell more tickets overall than its Christopher Nolan-directed counterpart.
Low-end estimates from Box Office Pro show that the movie will bring in at least $85 million during its opening weekend.
While there’s not much known about the plot or tone of “Barbie,” it stars Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, contributed to a pink paint shortage, and has inspired culture and fashion dubbed “Barbiecore.”
The movie’s IMDb page reads: “Barbie suffers a crisis that leads her to question her world and her existence,” suggesting that life in plastic might not be so fantastic.
Meanwhile, Nolan’s latest biographical thriller is forecasted to make at least $45 million on opening weekend, according to Box Office Pro.’s estimates.
The film is a three-hour, R-rated feature documentary exploring the true story of how physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, played by Cillian Murphy, developed the first atomic bomb.
Other than the fact that both movies hit theaters on July 21, they have almost nothing in common — but evidence suggests that moviegoers are genuinely excited about both films anyway.
In the week leading up to the film’s simultaneous release, the internet has been ablaze with memes, jokes, artistic mashups, and even merchandise that mashes the movies together into the “Barbenheimer.”
Twitter users and artists have taken to the platform to a slew of fan-made movie posters of the movie mashup, featuring the iconic pink block lettering reminiscent of “Barbie” in the foreground and the fiery background attributable to “Oppenheimer.”
Another rendering pictures the movie’s two protagonists, with Barbie sitting cross-legged on Oppenheimer’s shoulder rather than Ken’s.
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