There is a lot of buzz and excitement about Barbenheimer, the release of Greta Gerwig’s Barbie, and Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer on the same day. Margot Robbie and Gerwig have gone to see Nolan’s film but, unfortunately, we don’t think Nolan will be doing the same for them.
Reports surfaced on July 11 that Nolan gave a “curt” no when asked if he was going to see Barbie by Insider. When asked about the concept of Barbenheimer, which has accumulated numerous memes on social media, he responded with slightly more … optimism? “Now, you must know I’m not going to answer that question, only to say those who care about the theatrical experience, we’ve been longing for a crowded marketplace with a lot of different movies,” Nolan said. “That’s what theaters have now and those of us who care about movies are thrilled about that.”
The competing opening date might be to do with the director’s complex history with Warner Bros., who he worked with almost religiously, but that all changed in 2021 after Tenet was released to what is now MAX exclusively after its cinematic release. Nolan was fuming. In a statement to The Hollywood Reporter at the time, he said, “Some of our industry’s biggest filmmakers and most important movie stars went to bed the night before thinking they were working for the greatest movie studio and woke up to find out they were working for the worst streaming service.”
However, it’s not all bitterness between the two titles. Cillian Murphy, the star of Nolan’s atomic bomb drama, has shared his enthusiasm about Barbie and the opening date it shares with his film.
In a recent interview, Murphy said, “I mean I’ll be going to see Barbie 100%. I can’t wait to see it. I think it’s just great for the industry and for audiences that we have two amazing films by two amazing filmmakers coming out on the same day. You can spend the whole day in the cinema. What’s better than that?”
Then, Barbie star Issa Rae made Nolan look like even more of a sour little man by saying that she also supports the two films releasing on the same day and will be going to see Oppenheimer. Rae said that she “doesn’t care” as long as people go and see her film.
“I think the Barbie–Oppenheimer rivalry is hilarious. I love that there’s solidarity though,” she said. “You know, where people try to pit us against one another but now it’s turned into, like, a double feature situation.” Rae then shared that people should go see Nolan’s film first before seeing Gerwig’s. Explaining her reason, she said, “Why would I wanna depress my weekend? I wanna have mimosas and cocktails after Barbie, I don’t wanna sulk—that’s just my plan. As long as you’re seeing Barbie I don’t care.”
With everyone being so civil, it just makes Nolan look silly. We think maybe he should grow up and stop being a child. It’s like he’s never had a film gross any kind of money at the box office. Maybe it’s a fear that a woman is predicted to have a bigger opening weekend than him, but that’s just a theory. Personally, I couldn’t care less about Nolan’s film, save for maybe Miss Pugh. For me, though, it’s Barbie all the way.
(featured image: Warner Bros. / Universal Pictures)
