‘Blue Beetle’ Unseats ‘Barbie’ Atop Box Office, Ending Four-Week Reign

A general view of the blue carpet during Warner Bros' "Blue Beetle" premiere at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, California, on August 15, 2023. (AFP)
A general view of the blue carpet during Warner Bros' "Blue Beetle" premiere at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, California, on August 15, 2023. (AFP)
TT
20

‘Blue Beetle’ Unseats ‘Barbie’ Atop Box Office, Ending Four-Week Reign

A general view of the blue carpet during Warner Bros' "Blue Beetle" premiere at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, California, on August 15, 2023. (AFP)
A general view of the blue carpet during Warner Bros' "Blue Beetle" premiere at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood, California, on August 15, 2023. (AFP)

The DC superhero film “Blue Beetle” led weekend ticket sales with a modest $25.4 million opening, according to studio estimates Sunday, dethroning “Barbie” from the top spot after a record-setting run that left movie theaters colored pink for a month.

The “Barbie” phenomenon is far from over. Greta Gerwig’s film, which earlier this week became the highest grossing Warner Bros. release ever domestically, nearly managed to stay No. 1 again with $21.5 million in its fifth weekend. It's up to $567.3 million in North America and an eye-popping $1.28 billion globally.

The other half of “Barbenheimer” also continues to perform remarkably well for a movie so far into its run.

Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer” took in $10.6 million in its fifth week. With a $285.2 million domestic total, “Oppenheimer” now owns the distinction of being the biggest box-office hit never to land No. 1 at the weekend box office. The previous record-holder for that unlikely stat is 2016’s “Sing,” which grossed $270.3 million in the shadow of “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” and “Hidden Figures.”

Universal Pictures' “Oppenheimer” has done even better overseas. Its global gross stands at an estimated $717.8 million through Sunday.

“Blue Beetle,” starring Xolo Maridueña, came in on the lower side of expectations and notched one of the lower debuts for a DC Comics movie. Though earlier planned as a streaming-only release, Warner Bros. elected to put “Blue Beetle,” the first DC movie to star a Latino superhero, into theaters in the late summer, a typically quiet period at the box office.

The production price tag of about $105 million was lower for “Blue Beetle” than the average superhero film. It's one of the last releases produced under an earlier regime at DC Studios, which James Gunn and Peter Safran took the reins of last year.

The film, directed by Ángel Manuel Soto and written by Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer, drew solid reviews – certainly better than the three previous DC releases this year (“The Flash,” “Black Adam” and “Shazam! Fury of the Gods”). “Blue Beetle” (76% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) is the rare comic-book film to put a Hispanic cast front and center.

But it also faced some tough luck, and not just in the unexpected staying power of “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer.” Southern California was bracing Sunday for Hurricane Hilary — potentially dampening ticket sales in the region. (Los Angeles was still its top market.) And like recent releases, “Blue Beetle," which added $18 million internationally, didn't have its cast available to promote the movie due to the ongoing actors strike.

Universal’s raunchy R-rated canine comedy “Strays” showed even less bite. The film, with a voice cast including Will Ferrell and Jamie Foxx, landed in fifth place with $8.4 million. Comedies have generally struggled in theaters in recent years, but “Strays” had it particularly rough given that its starry cast was unavailable.

“Strays” was very narrowly bested by “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem.” The Paramount Pictures animated release earned $8.4 million in its third weekend, bringing its domestic total to $88.1 million.



Netflix Enhances Languages Options on TV to Attract Global Viewers

FILE PHOTO: The Netflix logo is shown on one of their Hollywood buildings in Los Angeles, California, US, July 12, 2023. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: The Netflix logo is shown on one of their Hollywood buildings in Los Angeles, California, US, July 12, 2023. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo
TT
20

Netflix Enhances Languages Options on TV to Attract Global Viewers

FILE PHOTO: The Netflix logo is shown on one of their Hollywood buildings in Los Angeles, California, US, July 12, 2023. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: The Netflix logo is shown on one of their Hollywood buildings in Los Angeles, California, US, July 12, 2023. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo

Netflix on Wednesday rolled out enhanced language options for television viewers, allowing users to select from the full list of available subtitles and dubbing languages for any title.

The update aims to make Netflix's global catalog more accessible at a time when nearly a third of all its viewership comes from non-English language shows, the company said.

According to Reuters, language availability for popular titles such as South Korean drama "Squid Game," Spanish series "Berlin" and the Oscar-winning German film "All Quiet on the Western Front" has helped them attract fans beyond their country of origin.

Netflix said it offers subtitles in 33 languages and audio dubbing in 36 languages across its catalog, but the exact number of available languages could vary by title.

Previously, users could only choose from a handful of languages on television.

Netflix said it decided to change the limited language availability option on TV after it received thousands of language availability requests every month.

The feature is already available on mobile devices and web browsers, the company said.