Mattel, Inc (NASDAQ:MAT) shares rose in Monday pre-market trade after record numbers of moviegoers streamed into movie theaters for the opening weekend of Barbie and Oppenheimer, with the two blockbusters collectively known as "Barbenheimer."
The success of Barbie, directed by Greta Gerwig and starring Margot Robbie as Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken, could result in increased sales of the doll the movie is modelled on until the holiday season, analysts have predicted.
According to Bloomberg, Warner Bros’ Barbie claimed the top spot over the weekend, with $155 million in ticket sales from North American theaters from 4,243 locations.
Universal’s Oppenheimer biographical thriller, directed by Christopher Nolan and starring Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, and Robert Downey Jr. in other leading roles, also fared better than expected, taking in $80.5 million from 3,610 theaters in the US and Canada, per Bloomberg.
Internationally, Barbie earned $182 million while Oppenheimer brought in close to $94 million.
Box Office Pro had earlier predicted that Barbie would rake in $140 million to $175 million at the box office during its opening weekend, against Oppenheimer’s projected range of $52 million to $72 million.
Shortly before the market opening, Mattel was up 2.3% at $21.67.
Warner Bros rose 1.6% to $13.14.
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