Barbie Or Oppenheimer? Antony Blinken Jokes About US Briefing Room Screening

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday affirmed interest in watching both ‘Barbie' and ‘Oppenheimer' when asked about his choice between the two movies.

During the US state briefing, on a lighter note, Blinken was asked which movie — among Barbie and Oppenheimer — will he watch, if he gets three and a half hours.

“I guess I should also ask if you would get three and a half hours whether you would go for Barbie or Oppenheimer,” a reporter asked.

To this, Blinken replied, “First, I also look forward to seeing Barbie, but no set plans to do that. – again, have to find the time. Maybe we can do a double feature in the briefing room – for those who have seen neither movie.

This reply drew laughter in the briefing room.

On another point during the briefing, a reporter after asking a question on North Korea, asked about Oppenheimer as a follow-up question.

“…not exactly a related note, have you seen Oppenheimer yet?  And if you have, what do you think?”

Blinken replied. “I'm glad that these are two very distinct questions.  To take your second question first, no, I have not yet seen Oppenheimer; I'm trying to find the, what, three-and-a-half hours necessary”.

‘Barbie' is a fantasy comedy-drama film starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling. The movie helmed by Greta Gerwig has already grossed over 1 billion USD at the global box office, making Gerwig the first-ever solo female filmmaker with a billion-dollar film.

In the movie, Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling star as the stereotypical versions of Barbie and Ken, who leave the world of Barbieland on a quest for self-discovery in the real world. The cast also includes Issa Rae, Dua Lipa, Simu Liu, Michael Cera, Helen Mirren, John Cena and Will Ferrell.

‘Oppenheimer', on the other hand, is a biopic tracing the journey of physicist Robert J Oppenheimer, known as the ‘Father of the Atomic Bomb'. The dramatic movie is set in the timeline of the development of the atomic bomb and the politics around it.

The movie helmed by star director Christopher Nolan has received critical acclaim and has grossed over 600 million USD. The movie carries an ensemble cast with Cillian Murphy playing the lead, along with Emily Blunt, Robert Downey Jr, Florence Pugh, Matt Damon among others.

Both movies hit the cinema on the same day, i.e. July 21. This much-anticipated clash also led to the famous social media trend ‘Barbenheimer'.

Notably, the Second World War ended with America's attack on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The US dropped nuclear bombs names “little boy” and “fat man” on Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on 6th and 9th August 1945 respectively.

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