‘Blue Beetle’ Ends ‘Barbie’s Month-Long Reign Atop Domestic Box Office

‘Blue Beetle’ has ended ‘Barbie’s month-long domination at the domestic box office, as Warner Bros.’ new superhero film claimed the top spot on its debut day. This success marks the penultimate chapter of the current DC Extended Universe era, preceding a reboot scheduled for 2025 with ‘Superman: Legacy’. In contrast to ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’, which maintains strong ties to the series, ‘Blue Beetle’ stands as a mostly independent narrative.

Though ‘Barbie’ maintains an impressive box office streak and is anticipated to secure the title of the year’s highest-grossing film, Warner Bros. has faced lackluster performance with recent superhero releases such as ‘Black Adam’, ‘Shazam! Fury of the Gods’, and ‘The Flash’. Despite its economical budget, ‘Blue Beetle’ is unlikely to reverse the studio’s superhero fortunes.

After a full month, the domestic box office hierarchy underwent a shift. On its premiere day, ‘Blue Beetle’ outperformed Warner Bros.’ own blockbuster ‘Barbie’, relegating it to second place after its record-setting month-long reign. The film garnered $10 million on its opening day, including $3.3 million from Thursday previews. Predictions place the movie’s opening weekend earnings at around $25 million, which falls toward the lower end for superhero films. Nevertheless, ‘Blue Beetle’ was notably budgeted at about half the cost of most major productions today, with an estimated $104 million budget according to Deadline.

Initially conceived as a direct-to-streaming project, ‘Blue Beetle’ now stands as the second-to-last installment in the fading era of the DC Extended Universe. This universe will be revitalized under the guidance of James Gunn and Peter Safran with the release of ‘Superman: Legacy’ in 2025. The current era of the DCEU will officially conclude with ‘Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’ later in the year, which maintains stronger overall connections within the series, while ‘Blue Beetle’ presents a largely self-contained storyline.

The film’s opening figures are comparable to those of ‘Birds of Prey’ from several years ago, which is generally regarded as having underperformed, achieving less than $100 million domestically and approximately $200 million worldwide. Despite the boost from ‘Barbie’, Warner Bros. is grappling with the underperformance of three consecutive superhero films – ‘Black Adam’, ‘Shazam! Fury of the Gods’, and ‘The Flash’. Despite its cost-efficient production, ‘Blue Beetle’ is not expected to reverse the studio’s superhero fortunes.

‘Barbie’ is projected to secure second place with an estimated $20 million during its fifth weekend, having earned $6 million on Friday. By Sunday, the film’s cumulative domestic box office earnings are expected to reach $566 million, surpassing ‘The Super Mario Bros. Movie’s’ lifetime gross of $574 million to become the year’s highest-grossing film. Additionally, ‘Barbie’ is on track to replicate this achievement in the global box office, where it has already amassed over $1.2 billion. The movie shared its release day with the third-ranked film on the Friday chart, Christopher Nolan’s ‘Oppenheimer’.

Presented as a double feature named ‘Barbenheimer’, the simultaneous release of these two films propelled the domestic box office to unprecedented heights over the past month, with both movies showing enduring potential. ‘Oppenheimer’ added $3 million on its fifth Friday, and is expected to earn around $11 million over the weekend, raising its domestic total to approximately $285 million. The film is also crossing the $700 million mark. It continues to outperform the week’s other major release, the risqué comedy ‘Strays’.

Following the success of Jennifer Lawrence’s ‘No Hard Feelings’ a few months ago, it appeared that audiences were eager for R-rated, theatrical studio comedies once more, a genre that had largely shifted to streaming during the pandemic. However, ‘Strays’, similar to ‘Joy Ride’, seems unable to capitalize on the success of ‘No Hard Feelings’, and is projected to yield less than $9 million during its opening weekend, having earned $3.4 million on the first day. The top five at the box office was rounded out by Paramount’s ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem’, which added $2.3 million to its total on the third Friday. For more updates, an interview with ‘Blue Beetle’ director Ángel Manuel Soto is available, and viewers can stay tuned to FilmSweep.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Box office dominance

More about Box office dominance

• Blue Beetle Director Interview
• Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom
• Superman: Legacy Reboot
• Barbie’s Box Office Success
• Warner Bros. Superhero Films
• Oppenheimer Box Office Figures
• Strays Comedy Film
• FilmSweep Updates