SCOTTSDALE, AZ — For the first time in a long time, movie theaters were packed nationwide this past weekend with the release of Warner Bros Discovery’s (Nasdaq: WBD) “Barbie” movie and Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSA)-owned Universal Pictures’ “Oppenheimer,” which led to Scottsdale-based Harkins Theatres having one of its best weekends ever.
With two major movies being released on the same day, a cultural craze going by the name of “Barbenheimer” started with thousands of people around the country opting to see both movies in the same day. Nationwide, "Barbie" made more than $162 million in its first weekend of release and "Oppenheimer" brought in $82.4 million.
Harkins, which is the largest independently owned theater company in the U.S., said it had half a million moviegoers in its theaters over the July 21-23 weekend. The company shattered its previous online ticketing records.
