Oppenheimer continues to be a force to be reckoned with at the box office, with Christopher Nolan’s historical epic breaking new records as it passes $700 million worldwide. Starring Cillian Murphy, Nolan’s latest film chronicles the life and career of J. Robert Oppenheimer, widely known as the “father of the atomic bomb.” The movie has been a hit with audiences and critics alike and continues to draw people to theaters.
Now, Variety reports that Oppenheimer‘s box office has passed yet another milestone, crossing $700 million worldwide. This means the film is now the fourth highest-grossing movie of the year, in addition to passing Interstellar to become Nolan’s fourth highest-grossing movie ever. The film is also the fifth highest-grossing IMAX movie ever, on top of already being the highest-grossing World War II movie of all time and the highest-grossing R-rated movie of the year.
Why Oppenheimer Has Been Such A Hit
Nolan has proven himself one of the most talented filmmakers of his generation and audiences have consistently shown up for his movies. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Tenet ended up underperforming in 2020, but anticipation soon started to build for his next film. The first news to really emerge about Nolan’s follow-up was mostly about the impressive Oppenheimer cast, with what felt like every major movie star in Hollywood having signed onto the project.
The cast alone was certainly a big draw, with the likes of Murphy, Emily Blunt, Florence Pugh, Matt Damon, and Robert Downey Jr., among others, but the first Oppenheimer trailers also made clear that this film would be unlike anything Nolan had done before. The framing of Oppenheimer’s story as a thriller or even a horror movie was instrumental in helping the film gain momentum, as were stories about Nolan’s recreation of a nuclear blast without the use of CGI.
The quality of the film has also helped it maintain powerful momentum even now a month after its release, with strong word-of-mouth and repeat viewings driving low weekend-to-weekend drops. No discussion of Oppenheimer‘s success, however, would be complete without mentioning the “Barbenheimer” phenomenon. What started out as an apparent rivalry between Oppenheimer and Barbie eventually blossomed into a passionate and very viral celebration of both movies, which has proven an indispensable part of both films’ success.
