‘Barbie’ overtakes ‘The Dark Knight’ to become Warner Bros. highest-grossing domestic release

Greta Gerwig's highly successful film Barbie has achieved a remarkable milestone by surpassing the domestic gross of Christopher Nolan's 2008 film The Dark Knight. 

With a staggering $537.5 million, it now holds the title of the highest-grossing domestic release in Warner Bros. history, surpassing the earnings of the Batman sequel, which reached $536 million.

Furthermore, the film, featuring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling in leading roles, is now on the verge of reaching the domestic gross of The Super Mario Bros. Movie, which stands at $574 million. If it achieves this feat, it will become the highest-grossing release of 2023.

On a global scale, Barbie has amassed a remarkable total of $1.2 billion and continues to grow. This surpasses the earnings of Captain Marvel, which reached $1.1 billion, solidifying Barbie as the highest-grossing film ever directed by a woman. 

Previously, the film had already surpassed Wonder Woman to become the highest-grossing solo female-directed film. However, it's worth noting that Captain Marvel had co-directors Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck.

Greta Gerwig, Margot Robbie, and Ryan Gosling experienced their career-best opening weekend with Barbie, as it raked in a staggering $162 million. However, the film's success didn't stop there. Thanks to positive reviews and strong word of mouth, its box office performance continued to thrive, turning it into a true sensation.

Surpassing the achievement of The Dark Knight adds another fascinating twist to the competition between Gerwig and Nolan. In July, both directors released their films, Barbie and Oppenheimer, respectively, on the same weekend, and both emerged as resounding successes. 

Nolan's three-hour, R-rated drama distributed by Universal has amassed $266 million domestically and $650 million worldwide thus far.