‘Barbie’: Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling starrer mints USD 1 billion globally

WASHINGTON DC: Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling starrer fantasy comedy-drama film ‘Barbie’ has now crossed USD 1 Billon globally in just its third weekend. Taking to Instagram, the makers announced the news with a special post which they captioned, “Here’s to our incredible Barbies and Kens from all around the world for making our Barbie dreams come true. We’re excited to share that #BarbieTheMovie has hit $1 Billion at the Global Box Office.”

According to Variety, a US-based media house, this makes director Greta Gerwig the first-ever solo female filmmaker with a billion-dollar film. Three other billion-dollar blockbusters were co-directed by women, including ‘Frozen’ (USD 1.3 billion) and ‘Frozen 2’ (USD 1.45 billion) both co-directed by Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck, as well as ‘Captain Marvel’ (USD 1.1 billion), co-directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, as per Variety.

‘Barbie’ hit the milestone just after 17 days of its release, becoming the fastest Warner Bros. release) to join the USD 1 billion club. Earlier the fantasy drama film ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2’ held that record at 19 days. It’s only the second blockbuster this year and the sixth of the pandemic era to cross USD 1 billion, following ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home,’ ‘Top Gun: Maverick,’ ‘Jurassic World Dominion’ and ‘Avatar: The Way of Water,’ reported Variety.

The ‘Barbie’ movie is directed by Greta Gerwig and stars Margot Robbie as the famous doll and Ryan Gosling as her boyfriend Ken. It was released in theatres on July 21. As per Variety, Greta's directorial 'Barbie ' raked in USD 155 million in its opening weekend, marking the biggest debut ever for a film directed by a woman.

'Barbie' cost USD 145 million, not including a marketing campaign that propelled the movie into the mainstream long before it landed in theatres. Gerwig, the Oscar-nominated director of 'Lady Bird' and 'Little Women', co-wrote the film’s screenplay with Noah Baumbach.

Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling star as the stereotypical versions of Barbie and Ken, who leave the world of Barbieland on a quest for self-discovery in the real world. The cast also includes Issa Rae, Dua Lipa, Simu Liu, Michael Cera, Helen Mirren, John Cena and Will Ferrell.