‘Barbie’ Budget Breakdown: How the Greta Gerwig Film Became the Biggest of the Year

In the cinematic realm, the battle of the summer (and possibly the century) is about to unfold as two entertainment juggernauts face head-on in the ultimate Barbenheimer phenomenon.

Click here to read the story at collider.com.

Discussion Questions:

1. What is a budget?
2. Why do you think budgets are important to a studio when making a movie?
3. According to this story, what was the original budget for the ‘Barbie’ movie?
4. Why do you think the budget increased?
5. What is a forecast?
6. Why are forecasts important to a studio?
7. Do you think forecasts are always 100% accurate? Why or why not?
8. What does it mean for a film to “break even”?
9. What is a profit?
10. What is an expense?
11. What are three examples of an expense the studio incurred making the ‘Barbie’ movie (based on what you learned from this news story)?
12. What must happen for a studio to profit from a film?
13. Do you think all films are profitable? Why or why not?
14. According to this story, how much did ‘Barbie’ need to make to break even?
15. What was the initial box office forecast for the ‘Barbie’ movie?
16. How much has the film grossed so far?
17. Do you think the film was profitable for the studio?