This year’s summer releases Oppenheimer and Barbie couldn’t be more different from each other. You're seeing one about the creation of the atomic bomb and another about a Barbie girl in a Barbie world. But one thing they both have in common is their July 21st release date. Matt Damon, who's part of Oppenheimer’s stacked cast, is going viral for his opinion on Oppenheimer vs. Barbie. And I hope all it plays out just as he said, with both projects being a success.
With Barbie and Oppenheimer coming out on July 21st, there's going to be competition between two very different projects. When those on the internet put two and two together and weighed their thoughts on the same-day opening, they felt it’s like asking if you’re going into the theater prepared to feel glam and fabulous or ready to see an explosion (so to speak) of facts about the infamous Manhattan Project. With Oppenheimer’s Matt Damon playing the director of the Manhattan Project, he weighed in with Vanity Fair on his honest feelings about these two movies playing on the same weekend.
This is the first I’m hearing about it, actually. I haven’t paid any attention to that. People are allowed to go see two movies in a weekend. Oppenheimer is one of them!
I feel Matt Damon is absolutely right about that. Maybe you decide on that Friday night to dive into Christopher Nolan’s World War II drama of the “Father of the atomic bomb” and decide to see Greta Gerwig’s Barbie the day after. Or maybe you decide to have a movie marathon and see both movies on July 21st. However way you spin it, it is absolutely possible to get your chance to see both movies, especially since they've got such distinct tones.
While the experiences of seeing both movies will be completely contrasting from one another, it makes sense that audiences may feel the need to choose as the buzz between the two movies has been the same. With Oppenheimer’s first trailer giving us some chilling vibes and the movie's second promo exploring the history of the atom bomb, this just makes audiences' anticipation for Christopher Nolan’s new release grow more and more. As this talented filmmaker has a reputation for delivering big thought-provoking winners for audiences over the years like Interstellar, Dunkirk, and Tenet, it seems like audiences are revved up for what this Oscar-nominated director will give us next.
On the other hand, Barbie also has a good chance of dominating the box office too with its iconic cast posters becoming a fan trend as well as recreating Margot Robbie’s foot scene from the trailer. Not to mention, fans are just buzzing to see the infamous Mattel doll come to life on the big screen which has never been done in live-action before. With the amount of buzz both movies have, this is all the more reason why both films can still be on your watchlist for that weekend like the Good Will Hunting actor says.
If you still have no idea which movie to see first, sometimes it helps to get a second opinion. In the case of family man Matt Damon, he told Vanity Fair he’ll be getting four opinions once he asks his daughters what they’d like to see. When asked if his kids are interested in Barbie, he said:
I’ll have to ask them that. If that’s the case, they’ll see two movies that weekend!
Well, there you have it. This is all the more reason why you don't have to choose between the two movies. I'm hoping audiences give both Oppenheimer and Barbie a fair chance. After all, Matt Damon himself might have a very busy weekend at his local theater with these two 2023 movie releases. It’s going to be really exciting to find out whether it’ll be Oppenheimer or Barbie that holds the number one spot at the weekend box office.
