AMC boasts biggest week ever during ‘Barbenheimer’ buzz

AMC Theatres says more people went to its venues last week than at any other seven-day period in the company’s 103-year history.

The massive influx of moviegoers, driven primarily by the release of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer,” broke the company’s attendance and revenue records across the country during the week of July 21-27. The weekend of July 20 was also the busiest weekend at AMC Theatres since the reopening of venues after the COVID-19 pandemic.

The company said it couldn’t say how many moviegoers were involved in its record-breaking week.

“Barbie” brought in over $350 million domestically and “Oppenheimer” grossed just under $175 million.

“The monumental success of ’Barbie’ and ’Oppenheimer’ has the entire movie and movie theater industry abuzz, with discussions of new records and new benchmarks being realized seemingly wherever you turn,” AMC CEO Adam Aron said. “These two movies, along with the many others playing on our huge silver screens, continue to rewrite what is possible at the box office.”

In the U.S., 65 AMC locations set their own single-week box office records.

While “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” were the top moneymakers of the week, with many audience members seeing both films on the same day, other films continued to attract audiences.

The newest “Mission: Impossible” film, “Dead Reckoning Part One”, and “The Sound of Freedom” also brought in impressive revenues for the theaters.

The massive theatrical hits last month put pressure on Hollywood to not only end the writer and actor strikes, but also to consider theater sales even as streaming continues to dominate.

During the pandemic, when theaters were mostly closed, many high-profile films were released directly onto streaming platforms. Consumers mostly praised the move, and studios continued to release films on streaming even after theaters opened. However, with the runaway success of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer,” studios may reconsider the power of theater sales.