Oppenheimer vs. Barbie: An Audience’s Favorite Double Feature
On July 21st, two movies will release in theaters that, alongside each other, have caught the attention of moviegoers worldwide: Oppenheimer and Barbie. One film grapples with existentialism and the alertness of death; what it means to be human in a world where its true darkness is hidden to the naked eye.
The other film is Christopher Nolan’s biopic about J. Robert Oppenheimer.
Two pieces of media sharing a release date is a common love for the internet. Between 2019 and 2020, fan art between the DOOM and Animal Crossing series saw a massive rise due to the shared release date of the franchises’ newest entries (DOOM Eternal and Animal Crossing: New Horizons, respectively). Three years later, the trend seems to repeat itself as Greta Gerwig’s Barbie and Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer will be releasing on the same day, with many moviegoers intending to see them back-to-back.
Matt Damon, who stars in Oppenheimer as Leslie Groves, reminded audiences that “people are allowed to go see two movies in a weekend,” in an interview with Vanity Fair, following his admission that he’d never heard of a “war” between the two movies.
Regardless of which films an audience member will choose to see—one, both, or none—it can be said for both movies that they seem to be shaping up to be equal parts fun and captivating. The Barbie film seems to be a surprisingly sincere adaptation of the brand, much like how The LEGO Movie was to its namesake brand. Each actor seems to have fun in the film, corroborating this sentiment in interviews leading up to the release. In addition, the chilling acting in Oppenheimer mixed with the gritty theming and explosive practical effects is leading up to another great film from Christopher Nolan. The film has earned Nolan his first undisputed R-rating in over two decades, which would allow him creative freedom to take the story of J. Robert Oppenheimer’s life where it needs to go.
It seems another release date war may be brewing following these films, however. It was recently revealed that the current release dates of Fast X: Part 2 and Minecraft are one in the same: April 4, 2025. And what changes? Jason Momoa is set to star in both.
Barbie and Oppenheimer will release worldwide on July 21st, 2023.