‘Barbenheimer’ arrives as moviegoers flock to a Mattel-mushroom cloud double feature

By JAKE COYLE
AP Film Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Waves of pink-clad moviegoers passed under cardboard palm trees on the frenzied first day of “Barbenheimer.” After a feverish drumbeat propelled forward by a mushroom cloud of memes, the most anticipated day on the year’s movie calendar finally arrived as “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” — two movie opposites brought together by cross-marketing fate — landed in theaters. Both are off to strong starts at the box office. “Barbie” grossed $22.5 million in Thursday showings, the best mark of the year. “Oppenheimer” began with $10.5 million in Thursday sales. Some 200,000 moviegoers are expected to see the films as a double feature, reviving a once ubiquitous but long dormant moviegoing habit.