The new Barbie live action film opens today, and Cheddar's very own Michelle Castillo is on the scene, joining audiences at the start of opening weekend.



<div class="block">The new <i>Barbie</i> live action film opens today, and Cheddar&#39;s very own Michelle Castillo is on the scene, joining audiences at the start of opening weekend. </div>

On the Scene at the Alamo Drafthouse Barbie Premiere

Welcome back to need to know I'm Christian and all right, this is a fun one. The Barbie movie is one of the most anticipated films of the summer. And this morning very own. Castillo is on the scene at Alamo Draft House in downtown Brooklyn as an audience is about to check out this film. Good morning Michelle. Good morning Kristen. Yes, we just saw the crowd walk in for the 10 a.m. Barbie movie. It is sold out here. Barbie is actually sold out all day. Also the 9:30 a.m. Oppenheimer movie sold out showing that the Barbie Heimer phenomenon is truly real. So I'm here with Mark Samson. He is the lead of the director of Field Marketing for Alamo Draft House. So how has this Barbie movie done in sales in terms of getting people into theaters again? Oh, just way beyond all of our expectations. I think that, you know, with a movie like this, we knew it would be big for us. We had eyed this pretty early on as something we were really excited about. But to see the way that this movie has tapped into the cultural zeitgeist has gone beyond I think what anybody could have imagined. Probably even the filmmakers, it really has tapped into something, an audience that people really want to see. So it's great to have people coming out to a movie. It's a Friday 9:30 a.m. and we've got a packed house here, which is really so great to see. It's great for the movie industry. It's great for the, because we've got two amazing movies from two incredible directors coming out on the same day. So to have some of that and to have people enjoying coming out to a movie theater again and watching things in a theater, which is how we love to see movies, right, with a crowd, the best way to see it. It's well above and beyond all our expectations for sure. You know, it feels like the summer movie season is in full swing. We had mission impossible, which is 96 on Rotten Tomatoes. Both of these are certified fresh. Are you starting to see crowds come back and really enjoy that summer season? Absolutely. Yeah. I mean, it's great when you have the movies there to see. I think it shows that when you have quality movies coming out in a movie theater, people will get off the couch and turn off Netflix and come and watch a movie in a movie theater with a crowd. So it's been great to see not only the big Blockbusters coming, but movies that are really well received. By critics and audiences, like you mentioned the Rotten Tomato scores on all three of those movies are doing really, really well. So, yeah, we love it. It's just a great time for, we're so happy that people are coming back and joining us now, back to Barbie. I know you guys had advanced greetings this week. What is the audience reaction been so far? And you saw it yourself? I did. Yeah, it was so great to see it with a crowd. People are clapping and cheering, which is so much fun. I mean, that's what you love to see when you go see a movie with the crowd. Is that environment of everyone around you a communal experience. So it's so much fun to sit in with the crowd and watch it. I keep poking my head in the theaters just when I know some really funny parts are coming up just to see how people are reacting to it. So it really is great. The crowds have been amazing. We've got sold out shows like you mentioned all day today, all weekend long for both of these movies. So it's really great to see people reacting to it in a really, really strong way. Now, I can't remember a merchandizing campaign, a marketing campaign like the Barbie movie. How are you guys tapping into it? Well, it's funny because, you know, Barbie obviously is based on a Mattel toy line that's been out for a very long time. So obviously there are going to be lot of tie ins and we wanted to be a part of that too. So we actually worked very closely with both the filmmakers and the people at Mattel to come up with a whole bunch of different merch options for people to pick up. I love this because it reminds me of when I used to go to school, right when you were a kid. So this is like an old school like tin lunch box with the so we can, you can pick some of those up. We've got pins, we've got T shirts, we already sold out of these Barbie sunglasses that she wears in the early part of the movie. So yeah, if you want some bar merch are going to have to get it quickly, but you can get it with us here and this stuff is selling so well, way beyond our expectations. We were like, let's do a lunch box. And then as soon as we saw that selling so well, like these Ken fanny packs, those were a late edition. We just keep adding more stuff and the appetite for all of this has been so strong and we just love seeing Barbie fans come out and really embrace this in a really positive way. Now, are you seeing the Barben Heimer Effect? I know we said the nine sold out. It's a 70 millimeter three hour movie and people are here at 9 30 in the morning. Right. Are they going to go to Barbie next, do you think? I think so. I think we've seen a lot of people on social media tell us like they're planning unofficial double features with us where it's going to see Oppenheimer and then going right into a Barbie screening, which is so amazing because these movies you wouldn't think would pair well together. But like I had mentioned before, you've got two amazing directors and Christopher Nolan and Greta Gerwig coming together to make these two very different types of movies. But for filmgoers, there are two amazing movies coming out on the same day and I think they both built each other up. If they were released on separate days, they'd be doing well, but you put them on the same day and it made this cultural event that people can't stop talking about and they want to experience. Well, we're going to talk more about that, but we're also going to look at the different kinds of ways you can celebrate Barbie, including Barbie cocktails here at the Alamo Draft House downtown Brooklyn. I like it. Michelle, it's five o'clock somewhere at 9 30 I think counts as well. Michelle Castillo, we appreciate it. Did she say Barbie cocktails? What is the world? And welcome back to need to know. I'm Christian Scherger. Chris, good to be here with you. It's great to have you. The new Barbie Live action film opens today. And Ches Very own. Castillo is on the scene. Joining audiences at the start of opening weekend. Good morning, Michelle. Good morning. I'm here in the House of Wax, which is the bar attached to Alamo Draft House downtown Brooklyn. We're going to talk a little bit more about the special Barbie themed events they're gonna have today throughout the weekend and for weeks to come. So I'm here with Mike Samson. He's the director of Field Marketing here at Alamo Draft House. So tell me more about the special Barbie themed events and where you can get your own beret. I was just going to say I love your beret. I mean, it looks great on you. And if you want to get one of those two, we have those at our Barbie movie parties, which is basically a traditional screening in the movie. But we provide props like the sunglasses, like the beret and offer a little bit more of a participatory experience in that theater. So we have our Barbie movie parties. We have Barbie brunch screenings. We have Barbie slumber parties, but what's a Barbie slumber party? So those are our late night screenings. So those would be something at like maybe 10 30 or 11 o'clock at night. And we encourage guests to show up in their pink pajamas, bring a in a blanket all inspired by the director who had all female slumber parties all through casting. She would bring the female cast and crew back and every night they would have these slumber parties and watch movies and we wanted to kind of tap into that vibe. So that's kind of what we're going for with the Barbie slumber parties. And then we have Barbie dress up screenings where we're encouraging people wear, wear your pink, come in like a can. So we've got a lot of different things, including some surprises, which I can't mention here. But you never want to miss out on an event at Alamo because you never know what might happen. Yeah, you've had a lot of special screenings where some of the creators and the cast show up. I mean, right now it's the writers and actors on strike. So there you have to be a little bit creative. What can people expect when they come to one of these special fan screenings? Well, I mean, like with the movie parties, you can get some, some free that you can bring home with you. And I think it just amplifies the fun in that theater. When you go to a movie party, it's with people that are really there to have a great time or if you're at one of our slumber party screenings, it feels like it's a really like taking that communal experience to the next level because you guys are all there. You're feeling super comfy and you're pink pjs and relaxing and it just kind of heightens that vibe a little bit for Sure. So some of the fun stuff is you also can get food and beverage. If you're not at a special screening, you have a couple Barbie cocktails. So right here is the, this is the Dream Summer 1980 this is the one for the national audience as I understand it. Absolutely. So this is available at every Alamo Draft House nationwide. You can get that alcohol or you can get a virgin option. So yeah, these are, these are available here nationally. And what goes in the dream summer 1980 we have Vincent Favela. Thank you. And this cocktail is Tito's handmade Vodka. We've got ginger beer from Top hat. We also have strawberry puree and lemon juice. You show how you make it in the background at all. Now I mentioned earlier there are special cocktails that you can get at certain locations as a Draft House is nationwide. Now, Brooklyn has its own cocktail. So tell me a little bit more about this one while he makes the Dream summer. Sure. That's Malibu Barbie coconut rum. As you might expect a nice Barbie Pink to that with some uh lime juice and raspberry syrup. And then if you want to take it to the next level, you can add a Ken shot for a little bit extra. There's a shot of whiskey that comes along with that. If you want to take your Barbie viewing experience to the next level, the next level. Yeah. You can get the menu. Barbie and a shot of whiskey on the side. Now, tell me a little bit more about the inspiration for the drink he's making behind us. The dream summer 1980. Yes. So we were thinking about like obviously this is a big, you know, Barbie Dream house and her dream summer. So when we went back to it, we were looking at the different years. So we went back and we have one. The virgin option is from when Barbie was first created and then the 1980 the alcoholic version is when Barbie would have turned 21. So we tried to have a little bit of fun with it and stuff that like, you know, Barbie could drink if it was in her world. So yeah, we came up with some really nice pink fruity cocktails that I think not just taste great, but they just again add to that vibe when you're in the theater to have a nice sparkly pink cocktail with your beret and your pink sunglasses and it just makes the viewing experience that much more exciting. Now, speaking of Barben Heimer, since those movies are showing up, are you expecting people to do the full day here? And kind of like, what can you do? We've already seen a ton of people reach out to us and while we don't have an official double feature planned, we've got the screen time set up so that you can bounce right from one to the other. You can finish a Barbie and go into an Oppenheimer. You can go finish Oppenheimer and go right into a barbie. You can take a break, come down and have a cocktail. So there's a lot of different options. We're seeing a ton of people who are doing both, not just in the same day but back to back. All right, cool. Now, I got two dream summer. You have to share one with this morning. Cheers. Yeah. Hm. Amazing work. So I'm gonna get ready to go see the Barbie screening. But in case you're wondering, I was inspired by my outfit today to dress up like reporter Barbie. She has also a similar outfit. So this is my best reporter Barbie. So signing off here from Alamo Draft House downtown Brooklyn and see you guys in studio Michelle. Amazing work enough to get me, I think actually to the theaters. I'm excited. I like it. I need a Ken outfit. Yeah. Yeah, you do enjoy our day and we got Michelle, our Bobby reporter Michelle Castillo, enjoying those drinks at a cool 9:50 a.m. on the east coast Michelle. Thank you.