‘Oppenheimer’ to Be Shown in Japan, 8 Months After ‘Barbenheimer’ Outrage 

This image released by Universal Pictures shows Cillian Murphy in a scene from "Oppenheimer." (Melinda Sue Gordon/Universal Pictures via AP)
This image released by Universal Pictures shows Cillian Murphy in a scene from "Oppenheimer." (Melinda Sue Gordon/Universal Pictures via AP)
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‘Oppenheimer’ to Be Shown in Japan, 8 Months After ‘Barbenheimer’ Outrage 

This image released by Universal Pictures shows Cillian Murphy in a scene from "Oppenheimer." (Melinda Sue Gordon/Universal Pictures via AP)
This image released by Universal Pictures shows Cillian Murphy in a scene from "Oppenheimer." (Melinda Sue Gordon/Universal Pictures via AP)

Japanese audiences can watch the movie "Oppenheimer" in cinemas from March 29, distribution company Bitters End said on Wednesday, after the epic on the creator of the nuclear bomb was nominated for 13 categories at the Oscar Awards.

The release date is almost eight months after memes mixing visuals from the film "Barbie" with atomic blasts provoked anger from people in Japan - the only country hit by a nuclear bomb during war.

The outrage over the "Barbenheimer" memes prompted an apology from Barbie distributor Warner Brothers Japan, which said at the time they were "extremely deplorable".

A spokesperson for Bitters End declined to comment on the release date or say why it took over half a year for "Oppenheimer" to be screened in Japan.

"We decided to release this film in Japan after much debate and deliberation, as the themes covered in this film are ones that hold a very significant and special meaning for us as Japanese people," Bitters End said in December, according to local media, when it said Oppenheimer would be released in Japan sometime in 2024.

The United States dropped a nuclear bomb on Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945, during World War Two, killing thousands instantly and about 140,000 by the end of the year. The US dropped another bomb on Nagasaki three days later, which killed more than 73,000 people. Japan surrendered on Aug. 15.



Justin Bieber Releases 'Swag,' his Long-awaited Seventh Album

FILE - Justin Bieber attends The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute benefit gala on Sept. 13, 2021, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)
FILE - Justin Bieber attends The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute benefit gala on Sept. 13, 2021, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)
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Justin Bieber Releases 'Swag,' his Long-awaited Seventh Album

FILE - Justin Bieber attends The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute benefit gala on Sept. 13, 2021, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)
FILE - Justin Bieber attends The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute benefit gala on Sept. 13, 2021, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)

Never say never! Justin Bieber surprised fans Friday by releasing "Swag," his seventh studio album, hours after he teased it on billboards and social media posts.

It is his first album since 2021´s "Justice" and his first since becoming a father last year, The Associated Press reported.

"Inspired by his devotion as a husband and father, this new era of music has fueled a deeper perspective and more reflective sound, resulting in some of his most personal music yet," Def Jam Recordings said of the 21-track album.

Billboards depicting Bieber were found by fans Thursday in Reykjavik, Iceland, and Los Angeles. The singer also shared images of billboards on his official Instagram account along with a tracklist that included song names like "All I Can Take,Walking Away,Dadz Love" and "Forgiveness."

Bieber, the two-time Grammy Award winning singer and Canadian pop idol who revolutionized teen pop and social media fame, is best known for his silky R&B pop lyric tenor, demonstrated on the diamond-selling "Baby,Sorry," and "Stay" with the Kid Laroi. At the beginning of his career, and as a tween, Bieber began working with Usher and the influential music manager Scooter Braun.

In 2023, Bieber sold the rights to his music - all six of his albums, including hits like "Sorry" and "Baby" - to Hipgnosis, a UK-based music investment company. The deal´s financial details were not disclosed, but Billboard Magazine reports that the sale was worth an estimated $200 million.

In August 2024, Bieber and his wife, the model Hailey Bieber (nee Baldwin), announced the birth of their first child, Jack Blues Bieber.