Barbie box office: Greta Gerwig becomes first woman to solo direct a film grossing $1 billion worldwide

More than 50 movies have made the landmark feat of grossing $1 billion at the box office, with more blockbuster films joining the list every year.

Of this prestigious list, just four of these films were directed or co-directed by a woman. 

Frozen 2, directed by Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck, made more than $1.4 billion, whilst its predecessor, Frozen, also directed by the pair, topped $1.2 billion. Third on the list of highest-grossing films with a woman’s touch is Captain Marvel, directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, which made $1.1 billion.

These are all impressive feats, but this summer, Greta Gerwig’s smash success, Barbie, set a new record for a film solely directed by a woman, as it passed the $1 billion mark.

How much has Barbie made at the box office?

Gerwig’s budgets have risen exponentially, as studios are keen to hedge their bets on one of Hollywood’s most popular new directors. Barbie’s original budget was $100 million, an eye-watering sum, and considerably more than the worldwide gross for Lady Bird.

But Barbie’s budget ballooned to $145 million by the time production was complete, meaning that the film had to be a success. And Barbie didn’t disappoint, raking in more than $350 million worldwide on its opening weekend from 21-23 July. 

The film continued to dominate the box office, competing against Christopher Nolan biopic Oppenheimer, and heavyweight franchises Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One, and Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.

Warner Bros. announced that the film passed $1 billion in ticket sales on Sunday 6 August, and is currently trailing just one film, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, as the biggest release of the year. 

The video game adaptation, directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic grossed $1.3 billion off a budget of $100 million.

The Barbenhemier phenomenon, which saw Barbie and Oppenheimer marketed as a double feature, first as an internet craze and then by the cast and crew themselves, saw both movies make a splash at the box office, but blonde bombshell Barbie has left the father of the atom bomb in her wake. Oppenheimer has made a respectable $500 million+ so far against a $100 million budget.

How much have Greta Gerwig’s films grossed?

Gerwig’s directorial debut was on the super-independent 2008 romantic drama Nights and Weekends, which she also starred in, made on the less than shoestring budget of $15,000. Though even on such a modest budget, it failed to break even, grossing just over $5,000.

Her next film, Lady Bird, coming nine years later, was much more successful - the coming of age drama had a much bigger budget ($10 million) and went on to make $79 million at the box office, and gained Best Picture and Best Director Oscar nominations.

In 2019, Gerwig continued her upswing with Little Women, which made more than $200 million off a $40 million budget and secured another Best Picture nomination.

With Barbie now passing the billion dollar milestone, Gerwig’s movies have just under $1.3 billion in total - this figure will rise further as Barbie continues its cinematic run.