Christopher Nolan unhappy with Oppenheimer and Barbie's coinciding premieres

In 2021, Nolan embarked on a search for a new production studio for his upcoming project, Oppenheimer, which drew interest from Universal Pictures, Apple Studios, Paramount Pictures, and Sony Pictures. Eventually, Nolan struck a deal with Universal Pictures, but not without a set of firm demands.

These included a production budget of $100 million, an equal marketing budget, a theatrical window of at least 100 days, 20 percent of the film's first-dollar gross, and a three-week exclusivity period before and after the film's release, during which Universal was prohibited from releasing any other new films.

Now here's where the plot thickens. Universal Pictures was initially set to produce Barbie, before the long-gestating Mattel film made it out of development hell. After facing numerous setbacks with Universal and even Sony dropping out, the film eventually found a home at Warner Bros. in 2018, with Greta Gerwig signing on to direct the film.

Warner Bros. Pictures had set a release date for Coyote vs. Acme for July 21, but in a highly suspicious turn of events, the film was pulled from its original release date, making way for Barbie to take its place. Interestingly, Christopher Nolan has a history of releasing his films in mid-July, with the only exception being Interstellar.

This has led many insiders to speculate that Warner Bros. intentionally scheduled Barbie on the same day as Oppenheimer as a form of revenge for Nolan's departure from the studio. While it's all speculation, when you connect the dots, it does seem like there might be some truth to this theory.

At any rate, no one can blame Nolan for feeling frustrated with Warner Bros.' shady maneuver. Oppenheimer is his most ambitious project yet but it risks being overshadowed and reduced to an internet meme thanks to the release of Barbie on the same day. The projections don't look great either; Barbie is expected to rake in $80 to $100 million on its opening weekend, while Oppenheimer is projected to make $50 million.

It's definitely not the stellar start Nolan will be hoping for, especially considering that Oppenheimer could have easily made double that amount if it had its own premiere date without a blockbuster competitor stealing the spotlight.