The recent cultural phenomenon called ‘Barbenheimer’ has finally made its way to the theatres this weekend, with Christopher Nolan and Greta Gerwig returning to the big screen, with Oppenheimer and Barbie respectively. But this isn’t the first time two famous movies have clashed together on the same day. Here are five famous examples:

Saawariya vs Om Shanti Om (2007)

On 9 November 2007, Ranbir Kapoor made his highly-anticipated debut with Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Saawaiya. However, the now famous actor had a mountain to climb that weekend, with Farah Khan and Shah Rukh Khan’s Om Shanti Om debuting on the same Friday, which coincidently was Deepika Padukone’s Hindi debut. 

Dilwale vs Bajirao Mastani (2015)

Almost a decade down the line, Sanjay Leela Bhansali clashed yet again with a Shah Rukh Movie, with Bajirao Mastani and Dilwale released on the same day in 2015. While the former starred Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh in the lead, Dilwale saw the iconic pair of SRK and Kajol returning after My Name Is Khan.

Blade Runner Vs The Thing (1982)

While Blade Runner will go down in history as one of the most important sci-fi epics of all time, John Carpenter’s The Thing is still considered to be the best horror movie ever made so far in the history of cinema. Many might not know, but both movies clashed against each other on a faithful day in 1982. Despite the popularity the two epics enjoy today, both opened to a fairly lukewarm reception from the audience. 

The Matrix Vs 10 Things I Hate About You (1999)

The end of the last century was marked with the release of two cult classics, in different genres. A Y2K Barbenheimer to speak? 1999 saw the release of 10 Things I Hate About You and The Matrix on the same day, starring Heath Ledger in the former and Keanu Reeves in the latter. 

The Dark Knight vs Mamma Mia! (2008)

This isn’t the first time a Nolan movie had to go up against a female-led movie. Before Barbenheimer, The Dark Knight and Mamma Mia were released on the same day, both turned out to be iconic in their regard. 

Image credits – IMDB, Shutterstock