Barbie is still smashing box office records three weeks after hitting cinemas
It’s been out for more than three weeks, and yet Greta Gerwig’s Barbie is still painting the movie industry pink after smashing several fresh box office records. The new movie, starring Margot Robbie as the iconic doll, has become the highest-grossing movie at the US box office by a female director, solo or otherwise - much to the chagrin of Ben Shapiro. The previous record was held by Jennifer Lee, the director of Frozen 2, after the Disney film banked $477.4m at US box offices. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter But this Barbie just keeps breaking records. The movie hit $492.6m on Thursday 10 August, and it now stands at $526.3m in the US. Barbie also became the highest-grossing live-action movie by a female director after the fourth weekend in cinemas. The pink sensation overtook Captain Marvel, which earned $1.13bn globally in 2019 and was co-directed by Anna Boden. Gerwig's movie has now taken $1.18bn to date. The records keep tumbling despite the fact that Robbie was not even first choice for the role, which she revealed last week. The actor, who was also a producer on the movie, recently told Vogue that both her and director Greta Gerwig initially wanted Gal Gadot for the role but scheduling conflicts got in the way. “Gal Gadot is Barbie energy. Gal Gadot is so impossibly beautiful, but you don’t hate her for being that beautiful because she’s so genuinely sincere, and she’s so enthusiastically kind, that it’s almost dorky. It’s like right before being a dork,” she said. Barbie was also banned in Kuwait recently, and now faces calls for a ban in Lebanon amid complaints in the Arab nations about the film’s social values. There are currently no plans in the works for a sequel. “At this moment it’s all I’ve got. I feel like that at the end of every movie, like I’ll never have another idea and everything I’ve ever wanted to do, I did," Gerwig said in a recent interview. “I wouldn't want to squash anybody else’s dream, but for me, at this moment, I’m at totally zero." Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.
2023-08-14 18:15
Real Madrid confirm loan signing of Kepa Arrizabalaga from Chelsea
Real Madrid have signed goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga on a season-long loan from Chelsea.
2023-08-14 17:18
Mastercard to Buy Stake in MTN’s $5.2 Billion Fintech Unit
MTN Group Ltd., Africa’s biggest wireless carrier, said Mastercard Inc. agreed to take a minority stake in its
2023-08-14 15:53
Blackstone Eyes Japan Property After Selling $4.5 Billion
Blackstone Inc. is exploring more acquisitions in Japanese real estate, after selling about $4.5 billion worth in the
2023-08-14 13:55
Brevan Howard Hires New Mideast CEO From Ares
Brevan Howard Asset Management has appointed Oualid Lahsini as chief executive officer of its Middle East business. Lahsini,
2023-08-14 13:50
ECB Still Seen Delivering One Last Hike in September, Poll Shows
Unmoved by recent signs that inflation pressure is abating, economists continue to predict that the European Central Bank
2023-08-14 12:21
Hedge Funds Turned Long Aussie Dollar at Just the Wrong Time
Hedge funds turned the most bullish on the Australian dollar than they’ve been at any point this year,
2023-08-14 11:20
Outsider Milei Upends Argentina’s Election With Primary Win
Follow our live blog and see the live results as election data come in. Argentina’s outsider congressman Javier
2023-08-14 11:20
China Shadow Banking Giant Alarms Investors With Missed Payments
One of China’s largest private wealth managers is triggering fresh anxiety about the health of the country’s shadow
2023-08-14 11:15
India-Pakistan partition: How aeroplanes played a crucial role
Up to 50,000 people were flown out of what became India and Pakistan after partition in 1947.
2023-08-14 08:28
China Hedge Funds in Crisis After Losses, US Investor Retreat
Foreign investors are losing interest in China, and hedge funds that target the world’s second-biggest economy are paying
2023-08-14 08:23
Anonymous Mets player calls Justin Verlander a ‘diva’, questions Scherzer relationship
An anonymous Mets player spilled the tea on Justin Verlander's and Max Scherzer's brief time in New York. Talk about pitcher drama.It wasn't enough for the Mets to lose to their rivals by a football scoreline this past weekend. No, the New York Mets just had to sink one level lowe...
2023-08-14 06:51