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For weeks now, movie pundits have wondered just how much money<\/a> Barbie<\/em> and Oppenheimer<\/em> would make on their combined opening weekend. As of Sunday, we have the answer: enough to buy a lot<\/em> of Dreamhouses (and\/or kitchen-free homes in Los Alomos).\u00a0<\/p>\n The actual numbers are nothing short of staggering. Though final tallies won\u2019t be available til Monday, it seems that Greta Gerwig<\/strong>\u2019s Barbie<\/em> has raked in about $155 million domestically and another $182 million internationally, exceeding even sky-high expectations<\/a>. Christopher Nolan<\/strong>\u2019s Oppenheimer<\/em> has earned about $80.5 million domestic and $93.7 million internationally\u2014a pretty stunning take for a three-hour drama about men in hats discussing theoretical physics.\u00a0<\/p>\n That means together, the phenomenon known as Barbenheimer<\/em> has made about $511 million worldwide, $235.5 million of which was earned domestically\u2014enough to make this the fourth-highest grossing weekend in American history, and the only one of those four weekends not<\/em> driven by a Disney-released sequel. (The openings of Avengers: Infinity War<\/em>, Avengers: Endgame<\/em>, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens<\/em> occupy the no. 1, 2, and 3 slots, respectively.)\u00a0<\/p>\n Deadline has a rundown of all the box office records<\/a> that have just been broken: Barbie<\/em> now boasts the biggest opening weekend ever for a female director. It’s also the largest opening weekend for a movie based on a toy (beating out Transformers: Dark of the Moon<\/em>). Oppenheimer<\/em> has the biggest global opening for a biopic.<\/p>\n But those stats undersell what really was, and is, special about Barbenheimer<\/em>. Heavily marketed as both these films have been, their massive success feels like an organic phenomenon, driven by actual enthusiasm from actual people. (What a concept!) Yes, Barbie<\/em> is based on IP, and so, in a sense, is Oppenheimer.<\/em> Both films are nevertheless idiosyncratic, auteur-driven projects, and not the sort of high-octane action franchise continuations studios seem to believe are the only sort of movie capable of making big money anymore. Both are also being received better than most wannabe blockbusters: critics (including Vanity Fair<\/em>\u2019s!) have reacted warmly<\/a> to each<\/a> film, while audiences have given each film an A Cinemascore<\/a>.<\/p>\n What\u2019s more, the apparent contrast between Barbie<\/em> and Oppenheimer<\/em> wound up working in both films’ favor; scores of moviegoers elected to see not one movie but both, dressing up in midcentury hats and suits as well as their Barbie best. \u201cPeople recognized that something special was happening and they wanted to be a part of it,\u201d Michael O\u2019Leary, president and CEO of the National Association of Theatre Owners, told CNBC<\/a>. \u201cOur partners in the creative community and at the studios gave audiences two uniquely different, smart and original stories that were meant for the big screen, and movie lovers responded by gathering friends and family and heading to their local movie houses across the nation.\u201d<\/p>\n The singularity of Barbenheimer<\/em> will be difficult if not impossible to recreate, though that doesn\u2019t mean studios won\u2019t try. We can only hope, then, that they take the right lesson from this weekend: as Nicole Kidman<\/strong> keeps telling us<\/a>, people want<\/em> to go back to movie theaters. They\u2019re simply more willing to return if it means getting to see something they haven\u2019t seen a million times before.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n