Topline
Warner Brothers apologized overnight Monday for social media posts responding to the “Barbenheimer” trend mashing the films Barbie and Oppenheimeras Japan’s official Barbie account criticized its U.S. counterpart for what it described as “extremely regrettable” social media content and Japanese users slammed the “Barbenheimer” craze for trivializing the atomic bomb.
The marquee for the Los Feliz Theatre features the films “Oppenheimer” and “Barbie” on July 28 in … [+]
Key Facts
The Japanese Barbie account posted a statement on Twitter, now known as X, Monday that said it found the reaction to the “Barbenheimer” trend “from the official U.S. account for the movie Barbie to be extremely regrettable,” as translated by the Guardiansaying it had asked the head office of Warner Bros to “take appropriate action” and apologize to “those offended by these inconsiderate actions.”
The statement was responding to social media posts from the U.S. Barbie account, now deleted, that positively reacted to tweets mashing up Barbie with Oppenheimersuch as one deleted tweet that responded to an image of Barbie star Margot Robbie with Oppenheimer star Cillian Murphy against a backdrop of flames with, “It’s going to be a summer to remember,” and another responding to an image of Ken with an atomic bomb hairstyle with, “This Ken is a stylist.”
Warner Bros U.S. responded to the criticism overnight Monday, saying in a statement to media outlets: “Warner Brothers regrets its recent insensitive social media engagement. The studio offers a sincere apology.”
The Japanese account’s statement was part of broader criticism in Japan to the “Barbenheimer” trend—in which users have juxtaposed the two contrasting films, which were released on the same day, and pushed for watching them together—given Oppenheimer’s focus on the creation of the atomic bomb, which was used in Japan.
#NoBarbenheimer has trended on social media in Japan, and the New York Times noted Japanese users responded to the U.S. Barbie account’s now-deleted tweets with photos of atomic bomb victims and comments saying they canceled their plans to see the Barbie film.
Oppenheimer’s distributor, Universal, told the Times it “wasn’t aware” of the controversy over “Barbenheimer” in Japan, and the film does not yet have a release date in the country.
What To Watch For
Barbie will be released in Japanese cinemas on August 11, days after the anniversaries of the bombings at Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 6 and 9, respectively. It’s still unclear if Oppenheimer will be released in Japan, though the Times notes it’s unlikely the country would ban the film, and foreign films often debut in Japan after a significant delay.
Big Number
$780.7 million. That’s how much Barbie has grossed at the box office worldwide so far, according to Box Office Mojo. The film has broken a number of box office recordsincluding becoming the biggest box office debut for a female-directed film and for a non-sequel or superhero film, and had the biggest box office opening of the year in 25 countries. Oppenheimer has grossed $405.6 million globally so far, and the “Barbenheimer” craze made the opening weekend for the two films the fourth-biggest opening weekend of all time at the box office.
Tangent
The Japanese criticism isn’t the only international controversy that Barbie has faced. Vietnam banned the movie due to its purported depiction of China’s controversial “nine-dash line” in the South China Sea, which claims territory over the region even as international courts have rejected China’s claims. The line was depicted in a map in the film, which Warner Bros has defended as a “child-like” depiction that’s not intended to make a political statement. The Philippineswhich is also in the region affected by the South China Sea dispute, decided not to ban the film—but instead just blur the line—after undertaking a thorough review of the film and determining it did not depict the “nine-dash line.”
Further Reading
Anger Over ‘Barbenheimer’ in Nuclear-Scarred Japan (New York Times)
#Barbenheimer backlash: Japan rejects co-marketing of Barbie and Oppenheimer as trivialising nuclear war (The Guardian)
Here’s Where Barbie And Oppenheimer Broke Box Office Records This Weekend (Forbes)
Warner Bros Defends ‘Child-Like’ Map That Got ‘Barbie’ Banned In Vietnam (Forbes)
‘Barbie’ Movie Banned In Vietnam Over Controversial Map (Forbes)
‘Barbie’ Movie Allowed In Philippines, Officials Rule After Vietnam Banned It (Forbes)
