“Barbie” not only broke the record for the first weekend of 2023; It also broke the opening weekend record for a film directed by a woman.
With $162 million in ticket sales in North American theaters, according to studio totals Monday, “Barbie” beat out both “Captain Marvel,” which was co-directed by Anna Boden and opened with $153.4 million in 2019, and “Wonder Woman,” Patty Jenkins’ 2017 film that opened with $103.3 million. With a reported price tag of $145 million, “Barbie” also cost less to produce than “Captain Marvel” ($152 million) and “Wonder Woman” ($200 million).
Globally, it also far surpassed the debut of “Wonder Woman” with more than $337 million to $228.3 million, although the worldwide launch of “Captain Marvel” was over $455 million.
The debut of “Barbie” is also significant because its audience was 65% female, which is not in itself a surprise, but when it comes to box office history, movies that open with more than $100 million often have a majority male audience (including both “Captain Marvel” and “Wonder Woman”). Many have noted that this is perhaps less of a rule and more of a lack of great movies that have been made and promoted with a highly successful female audience in mind.
Gerwig co-wrote and directed “Barbie,” which is intended to be the first of many Mattel-inspired spin-offs. And in just one weekend, his last two films, “Little Women,” which grossed $108.1 million, and “Lady Bird,” with $49 million, have already surpassed the national box office.
Now it’s a question of how high “Barbie” can go and whether it can outperform other major female-led films. In North America, to get the top spot, “Barbie” will have to earn more than “Frozen II,” co-directed by Jennifer Lee, which grossed $477.4 million. “Captain Marvel” is in second place with $426.8 million.