Summary
- Barbie, directed by Greta Gerwig, has achieved massive success at the box office, earning nearly $1.3 billion globally.
- Barbie will now have a limited IMAX release running for one week starting on September 22.
- Gerwig expressed her gratitude to Barbie fans for their support and announced that the IMAX release will include special new footage as a thank you to the audience.
Barbie is slated for a limited IMAX release that will feature new post-credits footage. The Greta Gerwig-directed film has been a massive box office success, having currently grossed nearly $1.3 billion dollars at the global box office. It has also been a critical success with glowing reviews and a current critical score of 88% on Rotten Tomatoes. Due to Christopher Nolan filming Oppenheimer with IMAX cameras, his latest film has been playing in all IMAX theaters since it released on the same day as Barbie, which is why Gerwig’s film has not been offered so far in IMAX despite its success.
According to Deadline, Barbie‘s limited IMAX release will run for one week beginning on September 22. This will take place after Oppenheimer‘s extended IMAX run and before Gareth Edwards’ science-fiction film The Creator releases in IMAX theaters on September 29. Read Gerwig’s statement about Barbie‘s upcoming IMAX release below:
“The worldwide enthusiasm for Barbie has been overwhelming, humbling and deeply moving. So many Barbie fans went on this journey with us, and we can’t thank them enough for supporting the film and sharing their Barbie experience in theaters, across social media and out in the world. We made Barbie for the big screen, so it’s a thrill to be able to bring it to IMAX, the biggest screen of all. And as a special thanks to Barbie fans, we’re excited to share a little bit more of our cast and crew’s incredible work by adding special new footage we hope audiences will enjoy.”
Putting Barbie on the biggest screen possible would’ve been exciting on its own, but the confirmation of new post-credits footage has made the upcoming release even more compelling. Previous comments made by Gerwig and a behind-the-scenes look may hint at what to expect after the credits roll. Barbie had a deleted post-credits scene with Helen Mirren walking in on Midge while she is in labor. Mirren serves as the narrator throughout the film, and this post-credits scene provides an opportunity to show her face, thus adding another layer to Barbie‘s meta-commentary. The scene can also provide payoff for Midge’s pregnancy.
Another possibility for the post-credit footage is an idea that originally appeared in the middle of the movie before it was cut. Gerwig revealed that Barbie had a “fart opera” occurring in an earlier version of the movie. It was cut as the humor and placement in the story didn’t work well. The “fart opera” could see the light of day via the IMAX release. It may not have worked in the middle of the movie, but it may work better as a standalone and purely humorous post-credits scene.
Restoring the scene featuring Mirren and Midge seems like a better choice that is more aligned with Barbie‘s themes and humor. The new footage may also be unrelated to anything that has been previously revealed, which could make the IMAX release even more of a must-see event. Much of Barbie‘s success is due to making the movie feel like an event in the first place. The limited IMAX release with new footage is a smart way of making Barbie still feel like an event more than two months after its initial release.
Source: Deadline