Support the fact-based journalism you rely on with a donation to Marketplace today. Give Now!

“Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” are opening on the same date. Why that’s not a bad thing.

Apr 13, 2023
Theaters are offering more choices to consumers, with release schedules looking similar to what they were pre-pandemic.
"Barbie," set to premiere in July, will go up against "Oppenheimer." While some are rooting for one over the other, there are viewers planning to make the two a double feature.
Courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures

"Avatar" sequel: rebooting the Hollywood-China romance?

Dec 16, 2022
"The Way of Water" debuted in China and the U.S. on Friday amid tense relations between the countries. A simultaneous theatrical release is a big deal.
A marketing poster for "Avatar: The Way of Water" in Shanghai. The movie was released simultaneously in the U.S. and China despite the chilly relations between the two countries.
Charles Zhang/Marketplace

Weak box office is scaring Hollywood into delaying theater releases

Sep 16, 2020
With the release of "Tenet," Hollywood hoped to prove Americans were eager to fill seats in cinemas. Nope. Now what?
Moviegoers watch a film at a reopened AMC theater in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, in August. While theaters are reopening, dragging box office numbers are spooking studios.
Tom Cooper/Getty Images