‘Barbie’ is about to become America’s highest-grossing movie of 2023
“Barbie” is about to become the highest-grossing movie at the domestic box office this year
By Jordan Valinsky, CNN
New York (CNN) — “Barbie” is now within striking distance of becoming the highest-grossing movie at the domestic box office this year, taking the crown away from “Super Mario Bros.”
According to studio estimates, “Barbie” has made $572.3 million at the American box office as of Wednesday, edging closer the Mario’s domestic haul of $574.2 million.
It’s likely that “Barbie,” based on the iconic doll, will officially snatch the title from the video game adaptation, “Super Mario Bros.” on Thursday, when Wednesday’s box office results are released.
“Barbie’s” run to the top will be faster than “Mario’s.” Deadline notes that “Barbie” will likely reach the record-breaking title in only 35 days since its release, while it took Mario, Luigi and the gang 138 days to cross the $574.2 million benchmark in the United States.
Since premiering July 21, “Barbie” has broken numerous records. The film made $155 million domestically in its opening weekend, making it the largest opening weekend of the year and the biggest-ever debut for a female director. In the weeks to follow, it also was crowned Warner Bros. Discovery’s highest-grossing domestic release, beating the former title holder, the 2008 blockbuster, “The Dark Knight.”
Last week, “Barbie” had also crossed the $1.2 billion mark globally, after hitting the $1 billion milestone less than three weeks ago — a feat achieved only by about 50 films in history, adjusted for inflation, Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at Comscore, previously told CNN. It also placed director Greta Gerwig as the highest-grossing woman movie director in history.
The movie’s reign of sitting at the top of the box office came to an end last weekend, when “Blue Beetle” unseated “Barbie.” The newest DC superhero film grossed an estimated $25.4 million, while “Barbie” slipped to second, bringing in $21.5 million, according to studio estimates.
“Barbie” and “Blue Beetle” are distributed by CNN’s parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery.
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