‘Oppenheimer’s’ $900 mln haul an important moment for theaters

LOS ANGELES

Hopes were always high for Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer.” The studio knew the film was great, and commercial. But no one in the industry expected that a long, talky, R-rated drama released at the height of the summer movie season would earn over $900 million at the box office.

As of Sept. 18, “Oppenheimer’s” global total was nearly $913 million, making it Nolan’s third highest grossing film, trailing only the “Dark Knight” sequels. It's also the third biggest film of the year behind “Barbie” and “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” and the most successful biopic ever, surpassing “Bohemian Rhapsody.” It’s a staggering sum that has been driven by audiences of all ages and an enthusiasm for film and large format screenings.

“When you make a film, you hope that you’re going to connect with an audience in some form or another,” “Oppenheimer” producer Emma Thomas told the AP. “But, particularly with a three-hour film that has a serious subject and is challenging in many ways, this sort of success is beyond our wildest imaginings.”

Even after nine weeks in theaters, 11 of the 25 screens capable of projecting the coveted IMAX 70mm prints ( Nolan’s preferred format ) continued to play the film on some of the busiest screens, like the TCL Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles and the AMC Lincoln Square in New York.

“The reason we’re still in those theaters is because the audience is demanding it,” Thomas said. “This is not something that we can impose - I wish we could, but it’s genuine.”

Thomas, who is married to Nolan, has produced all of his films going back to his short “Doodlebug.” From “Memento” and “The Prestige” to “Inception,” “Interstellar” and “Dunkirk,” their original films have often defied conventional box-office logic. With “Oppenheimer,” they felt good about what they’d made but also know that the marketplace, and box-office tracking, has been a little unpredictable since the pandemic.

“Chris has always made films that challenge audiences,” Thomas said. “He has faith in his audiences and, generally, they’ve met him where he is.”

Kodak film stock ceased

Twenty-four of the 25 top earning theaters showing “Oppenheimer” played it in IMAX 70mm or 70mm. Domestically, the 25 IMAX 70mm screens have grossed some $20 million; standard 70mm locations accounted for over $14 million. And this a decade after production of Kodak motion picture film stock nearly ceased.

“I don’t think there’s anyone who could disagree - seeing ‘Oppenheimer’ on film is superior in every single way,” Anderson said. “Not to mention, people are tired of asking, ‘Why would I go to a movie theater to watch TV?’ Good question...you don’t have to anymore.”

Theaters rallied around “Oppenheimer” from the beginning. The historic TCL Chinese Theater even brought a film projector back into operation and built a custom booth. It was an effort that was richly rewarded: “Oppenheimer” is the highest grossing film in its 97-year history with $2.3 million and counting, passing the previous record holder, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” which grossed $1.5 million in 15 weeks, after just four.

The highest grossing theater overall, though, is AMC Lincoln Square, where every IMAX 70mm showing was sold out for over four weeks. Both locations are among the 10 that will continue to present the film in IMAX 70mm in its 10th weekend. By contrast, “Dunkirk” finished its IMAX 70mm run in week eight.

What to make of theaters projecting movies on film often outgrossing the digital projection?

“I would call this is nature’s way of healing,” Anderson said.

“Chris has always talked a lot about the formats and wanting people to see the best version possible, as far as the way that he intended the film to be seen. Now I’m hearing that there are other studios who are interested in putting their films out on those film screens,” she said. “It's not that we think that film is the only way. Every project is different and requires a different toolkit. We’ve always just wanted filmmakers to have that option.”

And it’s not exclusively film that’s succeeding either. IMAX overall has seen some of its biggest profits ever from “Oppenheimer,” with over $179 million globally.

“The future of cinema is IMAX and the large formats,” Villeneuve said. “The audience wants to see something that they cannot have at home, that they cannot have on streaming. They want to experience an event.”