‘Barbie’ Scores Record Box-Office Opening for Film Directed by a Woman

Greta Gerwig’s Barbie has reportedly broken the record for the best U.S. box office opening for a movie helmed by a female director, with $155 million in its first weekend.

The box office opening for Barbie beats 2019’s Captain Marvel, which was co-directed by Anna Boden, and had a $153 million opening, according to a report by Deadline.

Globally, Barbie has reportedly raked in an estimated $337 million at the box office, following Captain Marvel, which brought in $456.7 million around the world.

For comparison, Gerwig’s (pictured, left) 2019 film Little Women brought in $218.8 million globally. And in 2017, Patty Jenkin’s Wonder Woman earned $103.2 million at its U.S. box office opening.

As for Barbie, the film also reportedly has the highest opening in the United States so far this year. Meanwhile, Oppenheimer is also finding success in the box office, with $80.5 million over the weekend.

Gerwig is a three-time Oscar nominee, one for Best Adapted Screenplay on Little Women and two for the film Lady Bird.

Warner Bros. chose to launch Barbie this weekend to space the Mattel movie out from other family films over the summer — not to directly compete with Christopher Nolan, according to Deadline.

Meanwhile, Angel Studios’ Sound of Freedom has kept up its momentum, earning $20.1 million in its third weekend — slightly higher than its first weekend haul — after crossing into the $100 million mark at the domestic box office last Wednesday.

You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Facebook and Twitter at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.