Summary

Oppenheimer became the third highest-grossing movie of 2023, earning $952 million worldwide. Partially because of its success, Universal has surpassed Disney to become the highest-grossing studio at the 2023 domestic box office with $1.93 billion. Universal’s success is attributed to several other tentpole hits as well, including The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Fast X, and Five Nights at Freddy’s.

Oppenheimer has helped break a box office curse for Universal. The biographical thriller about the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer came out on the same July 2023 weekend as Greta Gerwig’s Barbie, a movie with a diametrically opposed tone and color palette that inspired the viral “Barbenheimer” double feature craze. While Barbie rocketed past $1 billion to become the highest-grossing movie of the year, Oppenheimer also shattered records, following close behind to become the third highest-grossing movie of 2023 with a worldwide gross of $952 million (including $326 million domestic) at the time of writing.

Per Deadline, the Oppenheimer box office is one of several tentpole hits that helped Universal become the highest-grossing studio at the 2023 domestic box office. The company has taken No. 1 for the first time since 2015, above No. 2 company Disney, which had several high-profile flops this year, including Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny and Wish. Universal’s $1.93 billion at the domestic box office this year was bolstered by the success of other hits as well, including The Super Mario Bros. Movie ($574.9 million), Fast X ($150.1 million), and Five Nights at Freddy’s ($137.2 million).

How Will 2024 Go for Universal?

While 2023 has been a banner year for Universal movies, the studio did have its share of domestic flops. This includes the vampire movies Renfield ($17.3 million) and The Last Voyage of the Demeter ($13.6 million), as well as the animated feature Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken ($15.8 million). Also potentially in the red is the legacy horror sequel The Exorcist: Believer ($65.5 million), which earned $136.1 million worldwide but has yet to justify the company’s $400 million deal for the franchise’s distribution rights on top of its $30 million production budget.

Related The New $400M Exorcist Trilogy Already Looks Doomed Universal’s $400 million investment in the Exorcist franchise is looking bleak, with reviews and weekend box office turning in huge disappointments.

It remains to be seen if the company’s 2024 movies trend more towards hits or flops. However, there are quite a few franchise tentpole titles that could help boost Universal’s prospects in the coming year. This includes Kung Fu Panda 4, Despicable Me 4, Twisters, Gladiator 2, and Wicked: Part One. While some of those franchises have stronger contemporary name recognition than others, any of them could prove to be a major hit.

Gladiator 2 sees director Ridley Scott returning to helm the sequel to the Best Picture-winning original.

Other untested titles could follow the Oppenheimer route and become surprise smash hits for Universal in 2024. This includes the Henry Cavill spy comedy Argylle, the Blumhouse horror movie Night Swim, and the untitled Universal Monsters movie that is reteaming Scream VI directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett with star Melissa Barrera. While it remains to be seen if Universal can claim No. 1 again, it boasts a strong slate that may be able to compete well in a year with fewer titles due to delays from the dual Hollywood strikes that took place in 2023.

Source: Deadline