The success ofOppenheimerproves that directorChristopher Nolan’s ability to draw audiences to theaters, regardless of what he’s offering them, remains absolutely unmatched. Who would’ve imagined that a dense, three-hour biographical thriller about the father of the atomic bomb would play like a superhero movie? But that’s exactly whatOppenheimerhas done in the three weeks since its release.
And now, after having zoomed past the $550 million markthis past weekend, the film has added another feather to its cap.Oppenheimeris now among the 10 highest-grossing R-rated movies of all time, both domestically and worldwide. The film’s current stateside gross stands at an excellent $238 million.Oppenheimerhas made $340 million from overseas territories, for a running global haul of $578 million. It is now Nolan’s fifth-biggest movie, behindThe Dark Knight Rises,The Dark Knight,InceptionandInterstellar.
On Wednesday, the movie overtook 1984’sBeverly Hills Copto enter the list of the top 10 biggest R-rated movies of all time at the domestic box office. Ahead of it areThe Hangover Part II($254 million),The Hangover($277 million),The Matrix Reloaded($281 million),Deadpool 2($324 million),It($328 million),Joker($335 million),American Sniper($350 million),Deadpool($363 million) andThe Passion of the Christ($370 million). As things stand, the movie shouldn’t have much trouble cracking the top five when all is said and done.
On the global chart,OppenheimerovertookFifty Shades of Grey($570 million) to enter the top 10. It now trailsThe Hangover Part II($586 million),Logan($614 million),The Passion of the Christ($622 million), the Chinese filmDetective Chinatown 3($699 million),It($701 million),The Matrix Reloaded($738 million),Deadpool($781 million),Deadpool 2($786 million) andJoker($1.066 billion). It’s quite something to see an epic period film likeOppenheimeron a list dominated by genre titles.
“Barbenheimer” Benefited Both Movies
The film released alongsideGreta Gerwig’sBarbie, in what came to be known as the “Barbenheimer” event. And as spectacular asOppenheimer’s performance at the box office has been, it’s still approximately half of whatBarbiehas done, both globally and domestically. The satirical comedy, based on the popular Mattel property, has made more than $470 million domestically, and it recently became the second film of the yearto cross the $1 billion markat the global box office.
While the “Barbenheimer” clash might have started off as Warner Bros.’ attempt to snark Nolan for having severed longstanding ties, the publicity ended up benefiting both movies. It remains to be seen if Nolan will shop around for a new studio now, after having chosen Universal to distributeOppenheimer, or if he willreturn to his former home. He walked out of W.B.in protest ofthe studio’s controversial decision to release each film on its 2021 slate simultaneously on the Max streaming service, which was an affront to everything that Nolan stands for. Partially filmed on the IMAX format,Oppenheimeris a testament tohis love for the big screen experience. you may watch our interview with Nolan here, and stay tuned to Collider for more updates.
