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Tom Cruise Is a Barbie - Oppenheimer Double-Feature Evangelist

Tom Cruise is going door-to-door spreading the gospel. The Barbie and Oppenheimer double-feature gospel, that is, a church in which Matt Damon also belongs . These two big-budget summer blockbusters will debut on the same day, which leads some to pit each movie’s box-office numbers against the other or vow to see both of them in a doubleheader. Cruise is a part of the latter sect. “This summer is full of amazing movies to see in theaters,” the Mission Impossible star tweeted. “Congratulations, Harrison Ford, on 40 years of Indy and one of the most iconic characters in history,” he wrote before adding the important bit about an atom-bomb procedural epic and an existentialist movie about a plastic doll. “I love a double feature, and it doesn’t get more explosive (or more pink) than one with Oppenheimer and Barbie,” he finished. Cruise included pictures of himself and an executive holding movie tickets to each film mentioned. The real question, though, is the order one should view the movies. Is there a universally acknowledged sequence that one must view to get the best possible experience? Cruise doesn’t give us insight in his tweet. He needs to hurry up and make a suggestion before some brave soul tries to watch both films at the same time and ends up subconsciously associating Barbie with congressional hearings about nukes.

• why not both?
• oppenheimer

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Tom Cruise is all in on Barbie-Oppenheimer double feature: ‘It doesn’t get more explosive (or more pink)’

Fans have been debating what order to see the blockbusters, which both release on 21 july, article bookmarked.

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It’s less than a month until two of the biggest movies of the year are released on the same day – and Tom Cruise is excited.

Greta Gerwig ’s Barbie – starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling – and Christopher Nolan ’s Oppenheimer – starring Cillian Murphy – are both due for release on 21 July.

As a result, cinemagoers have been planning on watching the two blockbusters as a double feature and are now debating in what order to watch them.

Cruise, whose own summer action film Mission: Impossible – Dead Ref10ckoning Part One is out on 12 July, has expressed his desire to see the movies back-to-back.

In a tweet shared on Wednesday (28 June), the 60-year-old Top Gun star also praised Harrison Ford on his fifth and final Indiana Jones movie, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny , which is released in cinemas on Friday 30 June.

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“This summer is full of amazing movies to see in theatres,” Cruise wrote.

“Congratulations, Harrison Ford, on 40 years of Indy and one of the most iconic characters in history. I love a double feature, and it doesn’t get more explosive (or more pink) than one with Oppenheimer and Barbie .”

Cruise is known for passionately promoting the cinema industry. Earlier this year, Steven Spielberg was filmed telling the actor he’d “saved Hollywood’s ass” thanks to his $1.5bn-grossing Top Gun revival, Maverick.

At the Dead Reckoning UK premiere last week, Cruise told Insider : “I’m always pushing. I just remember, every time they say, ‘Can you top it? Can you not top it?’, we’re always pushing.

“Every film I do, whatever genre it’s in, I want to make it as entertaining as possible for that audience. I know I can do things better.”

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In the seventh film in the Mission: Impossible franchise, Cruise join forces with Avengers star Hayley Atwell to track down a terrifying new weapon that threatens humanity.

For the most part, reviewers have fawned over Cruise and the film’s breathtaking action sequences . Back in April, the star treated Cinemacon attendees to an “epic” 20-minute motorcycle chase sequence from the movie , which saw the 60-year-old action star bombing around the Italian capital.

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One is out in cinemas 12 July.

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Tom Cruise Endorses Your Barbie and Oppenheimer Double Feature

By Savannah Walsh

When Steven Spielberg proclaimed that Tom Cruise “saved Hollywood’s ass” with the unequivocal box office success of Top Gun: Maverick at last year’s Oscar nominees luncheon, Cruise took that to heart—and made it his mission to support the theatrical box office business for years to come.

Consider the opening bell on summer movie season rung. On Wednesday, Cruise shared photos of himself holding movie tickets for various big-screen titles alongside the following message: “This summer is full of amazing movies to see in theaters. Congratulations, Harrison Ford, on 40 years of Indy and one of the most iconic characters in history.” Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, the fifth installment in the blockbuster franchise, hits theaters on June 30.

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Cruise then acknowledged the two tentpoles that have become inextricably linked thanks to their shared release date— Greta Gerwig ’s Barbie, starring Margot Robbie, and Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer, starring Cillian Murphy. “I love a double feature, and it doesn’t get more explosive (or more pink) than one with Oppenheimer and Barbie ,” he said of the films, both of which debut on July 21.

He’s not the only A-lister to weigh in on the battle of atomic bomb versus arched foot. Matt Damon, who stars in Oppenheimer as General Leslie Groves, director of the top-secret Manhattan Project who appointed Oppenheimer as developer of nuclear weapons, also supports back-to-back viewing with Barbie . “People are allowed to go see two movies in a weekend. Oppenheimer is one of them!” he said with a laugh when asked about its box office competition by Vanity Fair at the Air premiere. But he admits his daughters may opt to see Barbie instead. “I’ll have to ask them that,” Damon said. If that’s the case, they’ll see two movies that weekend!”

Cruise’s own summer blockbuster, Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One is set to fly into theaters smack-dab in the middle of summer movie season, on July 12.

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“mission: accepted”: margot robbie, greta gerwig follow tom cruise in cross-promoting movies.

The star and director of 'Barbie' posted pictures of themselves pushing 'Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning, Part One,' 'Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny' and 'Oppenheimer.'

By Abid Rahman

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Is this the start of a trend?

After Tom Cruise took to social media to promote the three most hotly anticipated summer tentpoles outside his own film, Barbie filmmaker Greta Gerwig and star Margot Robbie returned the favor Thursday night.

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The post is simply captioned “Mission: Accepted!” an allusion to Cruise’s earlier post urging fans to go see the big summer movies and also the Mission: Impossible franchise.

Mission: Accepted! pic.twitter.com/DJ2gm5e4XU — Barbie Movie (@barbiethemovie) June 30, 2023

In Cruise’s post, the actor and Dead Reckoning director Christopher McQuarrie promoted Indy 5 , Oppenheimer and Barbie . Will Mangold and Indy 5 star Harrison Ford, and Oppenheimer ‘s Nolan and star Cillian Murphy now follow suit?

The cross-promotion will be a welcome boost to box office returns for Hollywood tentpoles outside of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse underwhelming this summer.

Early tracking suggests Barbie could open to a $70 million to $80 million if not more. Oppenheimer is tracking for a domestic debut in the $40 million range. Despite a mixed critical reception, Indy 5 is tracking to open with a solid $60 million to $70 million over the June 30-July 2 weekend. And Dead Reckoning is looking at a franchise-best opening of $90 million opening for its extended weekend, which gets underway Wednesday, July 12.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Tom Cruise (@tomcruise)

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Tom Cruise Encourages ‘Barbie’ and ‘Oppenheimer’ Double Feature to Support Theaters

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Tom Cruise is continuing to save movie theaters.

Earlier this year, the “Top Gun: Maverick” star was praised by Steven Spielberg for having “ saved Hollywood’s ass ” at the box office. Now, Cruise has taken to Twitter to encourage audiences to see this year’s summer blockbusters on the big screen.

Cruise allegedly also applauded DC tentpole film “The Flash” ahead of its premiere. His own summer action film “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One” has already received positive critical reactions ahead of its July 12 debut in theaters. Related Stories Back Pain, Grubhub, and Lazy Liberals in Lockdown: John Early and Theda Hammel on the Screwball ‘Hell Mouth’ of Their Comedy ‘Stress Positions’ Sundance Without Park City? Festival Exploring Options for 2027 and Beyond

The next month sees the summer movie season ramping up. Harrison Ford’s presumed final appearance as Indy in “ Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny ” hits theaters June 30 . “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” are set to battle it out at the box office with a shared July 21 release date.

“Vanilla Sky” and “Eyes Wide Shut” actor Cruise’s expansive Hollywood career has seen him become a advocate for the sanctity of theaters. Cruise allegedly convinced Paramount to give “Dead Reckoning” a theatrical release without undercutting the box office with a 30-day streaming window premiere on Paramount+.

A recent Puck report also claimed that Cruise has personally called rival studio executives and exhibitors in hopes of convincing them to relinquish PLF (premium large-format) screens for “Dead Reckoning” screenings. PLF screens come with an upcharge fee. “Oppenheimer” is already confirmed to be taking over all IMAX screens in North America for three weeks, which could kick out “Dead Reckoning” screenings.

An IMAX representative told IndieWire that IMAX will still house a three-week “Oppenheimer” plan for 1,550 out of IMAX’s total 1,700 venues worldwide while the Christopher Nolan film premieres later in China and Japan. “Oppenheimer” was entirely shot in IMAX.

This summer is full of amazing movies to see in theaters. Congratulations, Harrison Ford, on 40 years of Indy and one of the most iconic characters in history. I love a double feature, and it doesn't get more explosive (or more pink) than one with Oppenheimer and Barbie. pic.twitter.com/udWHHj4fAe — Tom Cruise (@TomCruise) June 28, 2023

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Tom Cruise, Self-Appointed Box Office Savior, Plans to See ‘Oppenheimer’ and ‘Barbie’ on Opening Weekend

• By Emily Zemler

Emily Zemler

Tom Cruise ‘s latest mission is to single-handedly prove that movies should be seen in theaters. The Mission: Impossible star has confirmed he will see Christopher Nolan ‘s Oppenheimer and Greta Gerwig ‘s Barbie as soon as they open simultaneously on July 21.

“I want to see both  Barbie  and  Oppenheimer ,” the actor told The Sydney Morning Herald . I’ll see them opening weekend. Friday I’ll see  Oppenheimer  first and then  Barbie  on Saturday.”

Cruise added that he wants to encourage viewers to go out and see movies in theaters, rather than waiting for streaming. He confirmed he’s a big proponent of enjoying films with that sense of true spectacle.

“I grew up seeing movies on the big screen,” Cruise said. “That’s how I make them, and I like that experience; it’s immersive, and to have that as a community and an industry, it’s important. I still go the movies.”

“This summer is full of amazing movies to see in theaters,” Cruise wrote. “Congratulations, Harrison Ford , on 40 years of Indy and one of the most iconic characters in history. I love a double feature, and it doesn’t get more explosive (or more pink) than one with Oppenheimer and Barbie .”

Speaking to the Herald , Cruise added, “Harrison Ford is a legend. I hope to be still going. I’ve got 20 years to catch up with him. I hope to keep making Mission: Impossible films until I’m his age.”

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After Cruise tweeted his intention to see Barbie , Gerwig and star Margot Robbie posted photos of themselves with tickets for Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One , as well as Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny and Oppenheimer . “Mission accepted,” the pair wrote on the Barbie Twitter page.

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Even Tom Cruise is planning a Barbie and Oppenheimer double feature

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Tom Cruise , ex-husband of AMC ad sensation Nicole Kidman , is emboldening moviegoers to flock to the theaters this summer.

The movie star encouraged a double feature of Greta Gerwig 's Barbie and Christopher Nolan 's Oppenheimer, both in theaters July 21, in a Twitter post celebrating the riches of the summer movie season. That also includes James Mangold 's Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny , which marks Harrison Ford 's last outing as the famed archaeologist.

"This summer is full of amazing movies to see in theaters," Cruise wrote. "Congratulations, Harrison Ford, on 40 years of Indy and one of the most iconic characters in history. I love a double feature, and it doesn't get more explosive (or more pink) than one with Oppenheimer and Barbie ."

Cruise will also be fronting a blockbuster this summer with Mission Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One , in theaters July 12. The pressure's on, as Cruise's last summer outing, Top Gun: Maverick , grossed a staggering $1.5 billion worldwide. In the aftermath of its success, filmmaker Steven Spielberg was overheard telling Cruise that he was "saving Hollywood's ass" as the industry attempts to rebound from the pandemic.

As for the Barbie vs. Oppenheimer discourse, Matt Damon , who stars opposite Cillian Murphy in the war drama, previously encouraged a double feature , telling Vanity Fair last month, "People are allowed to go see two movies in a weekend. Oppenheimer is one of them!" As for which title his family would prefer to hit first (Damon shares four daughters with wife Luciana Barroso), he said, "I'll have to ask them that. If that's the case, they'll see two movies that weekend!"

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Barbie and Oppenheimer double bill is officially Tom Cruise-approved

But which movie did he see first?

Ever since Barbie and Oppenheimer both announced the same summer release date, social media users have been joking about – and seriously planning – their double bills. And one more social media user can now be added to that list: Tom Cruise.

"This summer is full of amazing movies to see in theaters. Congratulations, Harrison Ford, on 40 years of Indy and one of the most iconic characters in history," the actor tweeted, referencing the recently released Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny . "I love a double feature, and it doesn't get more explosive (or more pink) than one with Oppenheimer and Barbie."

The tweet was accompanied by a photo of Cruise and his Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One director Christopher McQuarrie posing with their cinema tickets in the foyer of Cineworld in London's Leicester Square in front of the posters for the aforementioned posters. 

This summer is full of amazing movies to see in theaters. Congratulations, Harrison Ford, on 40 years of Indy and one of the most iconic characters in history. I love a double feature, and it doesn't get more explosive (or more pink) than one with Oppenheimer and Barbie. pic.twitter.com/udWHHj4fAe June 28, 2023

Cruise has long been an advocate for big-screen entertainment, campaigning tirelessly for Top Gun: Maverick to have a theatrical release in 2022 despite Paramount's wishes to drop the movie on streaming. The actor also championed returning to theaters when they re-opened after COVID-19 lockdown restrictions were lifted.

As well as sharing a release date, both movies have stacked ensemble casts – Barbie features Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, Will Ferrell, Emma Mackey, Michael Cera, Issa Rae, Ncuti Gatwa, and Kate McKinnon, while Oppenheimer's cast boasts Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, Florence Pugh, Robert Downey Jr., Matt Damon, Rami Malek, Kenneth Branagh, and Matthew Modine.

Barbie and Oppenheimer both hit the big screen on July 21. While we wait, check out our guide to the rest of the year's most exciting movie release dates .

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Tom Cruise Is Doing an 'Oppenheimer' and 'Barbie' Double Feature Too: 'Doesn't Get More Explosive'

The "Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One" star shared his excitement for some of the upcoming films he wants to watch in theaters

Monica Schipper/WireImage

Tom Cruise is showing some love for his fellow filmmakers and actors!

The Hollywood icon — gearing up for the theatrical release of his own film Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One next month — took a break from his action-packed schedule to tweet about some of the summer movies he is looking forward to watching himself.

Among the films he praised were Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny , the long-awaited sequel starring Harrison Ford as the legendary adventurer (out Friday), the atomic-bomb biographical thriller Oppenheimer starring Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer and Barbie with Margot Robbie as the famous toy. The latter two films will be released on the same day: July 21.

“This summer is full of amazing movies to see in theaters,” Cruise wrote alongside photos of himself and his Dead Reckoning — Part One director Christopher McQuarrie in front of each of the films' respective posters.

"Congratulations, Harrison Ford, on 40 years of Indy and one of the most iconic characters in history," added the actor, 60, "I love a double feature, and it doesn't get more explosive (or more pink) than one with Oppenheimer and Barbie.”

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Cruise was recently on the red carpet in Rome for the world premiere of Dead Reckoning Part One, as previously reported by PEOPLE, praising how people of different cultures "all join together to enjoy cinema" as he gave a speech from the city's famous Spanish Steps, according to Variety .

"It’s something that I grew up with, that made me and inspired me to dream and want to travel the world," Cruise said. “My goal since I was little was to make movies and travel. And not just be a tourist, but work in that world and understand their culture."

"Through my movies, I’ve been able to have that because everyone here has allowed me to entertain them. It’s a privilege that I have never taken for granted," he continued in his speech, highlighting the importance of seeing movies in theaters. "It’s my passion to entertain you, and I will always fight for big theaters and that kind of experience for everyone.”

Cruise joined his longtime collaborator McQuarrie, 54, along with some of the stars of the film, such as Esai Morales , Simon Pegg , Frederick Schmidt, Shea Whigham , Mariela Garriga, Rebecca Ferguson , Hayley Atwell , Pom Klementieff and Vanessa Kirby .

TIZIANA FABI/AFP via Getty

The star complimented his collaboration with McQuarrie — who directed the last two Mission: Impossible movies and also wrote 2022's Top Gun: Maverick — during his speech, saying the director has "had a hand in every single film I’ve made over the past 16 years."

"He is my creative brother and an exceptional human being,” Cruise said.

McQuarrie and Cruise have been working together since at least 2008, when McQuarrie wrote the script for Valkyrie . He later directed Cruise for the first time in 2012’s Jack Reacher , which led to him becoming the Mission: Impossible franchise’s director starting with 2015’s Rogue Nation .

In the series’ newest entry since 2018,  Dead Reckoning Part One follows Cruise's Ethan Hunt and his IMF team racing their most perilous mission: to stop a horrifying weapon that endangers mankind before it’s too late.

Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One is in theaters July 12.

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Are the “Mission: Impossible” and “Barbie” stars promoting theatrical moviegoing or angling for preferential treatment?

There is at least one episode of almost every adventure TV show where the good guys and the bad guys team up to take on a greater threat, like when the 1990s syndicated “Untouchables” show saw Elliott Ness and Al Capone team up to catch a child murderer .

Tom Cruise and Christopher McQuarrie dropped tweets last Wednesday promoting rival theatrical films . Margot Robbie and Greta Gerwig joined on Friday, via tweets from the official “Barbie” Twitter feed , to show off purchases of tickets to movies that were not “Barbie.” By Friday afternoon, “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” director James Mangold had expressed his commitment to see those films and “Oppenheimer” — the most anticipated of July — on opening night. As of Monday, Tom Cruise had pledged to see “Oppenheimer” on July 21 and “Barbie” on July 22.

“Like all things, the traditional means of promoting a movie (especially post-COVID) likely don’t yield the same result that they once did [which] requires contemporary approaches to get the word out and stay in the media cycle,” brand strategist Marcus Collins told TheWrap. “This is a good story that gets people talking about all their movies so they all benefit.” 

Tom Cruise switches to softball

At least one distribution executive wondered out loud if Tom Cruise — or his handlers — planned the photo ops as damage control after reporting in Puck painted him as trying to muscle “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer” out of Imax and other large-format screens. 

Several high-level studio insiders told TheWrap the alleged Imax feud between “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One” and “Oppenheimer” was much ado about nothing. One told TheWrap that the would-be scuffle was merely Cruise showing exhibitors his latest “Mission: Impossible” film in the hopes he could keep some non-Imax auditoriums after July 20.

“Every studio on Earth is asking for more [premium large format] screens,” said a former Hollywood executive.

The seventh “Mission: Impossible” movie opens on July 12 and is likely to lose its Imax screens and many of its other premium auditoriums to the Chris Nolan atom bomb thriller or the toy-based comic fantasy nine days later.

Meanwhile, at least one high-ranking industry executive told TheWrap that Margot Robbie has been lobbying AMC’s Adam Aron for “Barbie” to get its share of non-Imax premium large format screens, a notion that’s been disputed by other insiders. If that’s true, either for Cruise or Robbie, it’s not all about bravado and it’s an understandable move.

A poll conducted by The Cinema Foundation last April noted that 13% of those surveyed would only attend a movie if it was available in a premium auditorium, and even films that have underwhelmed in one territory or another have been expected to overindex in Imax . The premium push is about maximizing the number of theatrical moviegoers who otherwise might opt for streaming or VOD.

Cruise has been Hollywood’s pitchman before

Cruise has a history of playing ambassador for Hollywood.

“Tom Cruise has been supporting theaters for years,” stated one former studio executive speaking on background. “He’s always been a theatrical experience proponent.”

He famously made a big show of putting on a mask and seeing “Tenet” on its global opening weekend in the summer of 2020. 

He was the first speaker at the 2002 Academy Awards, asking and answering the question about the necessity and appropriateness of celebrating movies in the shadow of the 9/11 attacks.

And he even joined Stephen King, James Gunn and David Zaslav in praising “The Flash,” even if in that case it was in a private phone call to the film’s directors Andy and Barbara Muschietti.

In this case, Cruise’s message speaks to those who have still not gotten back into the swing of regular theatrical moviegoing because of COVID variables and fears of paying $20 a ticket for a subpar audiovisual presentation or unruly audiences.

“Once you get into the theater and you realize that it’s safe, the audience is being respectful and no one is playing on their phone, it’s a reminder that you once enjoyed the experience,” that former executive declared. The message, the person said, is simple: “If you’re healthy and want to see these movies, please come see all these movies in theaters.”

A rising theatrical tide lifts all boats

The industry professionals and insiders interviewed by TheWrap uniformly denied a cooperative effort on a studio level.

“Absolutely no coordination,” one high-level studio executive said.

Whether the filmmakers behind “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One,” “Oppenheimer” and “Barbie” may be proverbial rivals, they know that non-theatrical entertainment options are greater threats to their theatrical fortunes. 

Regardless of which film earns more at the global box office, those who are heavily invested, financially and philosophically, in the continued existence of global theatrical exhibition are in better shape if the overall theatrical industry is in healthier shape.  

It’s why Universal and Focus unleashed a slew of smaller programmers like “Let Him Go” and “Freaky” in late 2020, both to test out their PVOD program and — after a soft domestic performance from Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet” caused Hollywood to delay its end-of-2020 tentpole slate — to make sure theaters were still around to play Comcast-distributed biggies like “F9″ and “No Time to Die” when COVID improved.  

Even Jason Kilar’s controversial Project Popcorn, which sent Warner Bros.’ 2021 releases to HBO Max and theaters concurrently, at least allowed theaters to bank on a consistent slate of big movies like “Godzilla Vs. Kong,” “The Conjuring 3” and “Dune.” 

Nolan’s latest epic or Cruise’s actioner can’t earn hundreds of millions at the worldwide box office if movie theaters aren’t fully functioning. And star actors and directors still tend to get a sizable cut of theatrical revenue: Cruise reportedly earned over $100 million after “Top Gun: Maverick” grossed $1.49 billion worldwide.

As much as theaters love periodic blowout hits like “Avatar: The Way of Water” or “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” chains cannot subsist on a few “Super Mario Bros. Movie”-sized blockbusters each year.  

“Movie competition isn’t always a zero-sum game,” said Collins. “Outside of a few titles, going to the movies hasn’t fully returned post-COVID. It’s fitting that Tom Cruise would be the one to kick this off because it’s the job of the category leader to save the category.” 

Your move, Christopher Nolan.

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Tom Cruise Lays Out Plan To See ‘Oppenheimer’ & ‘Barbie’ On Their Opening Weekend

By Armando Tinoco

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Tom Cruise is on a mission to watch both Oppenheimer and Barbie on their opening weekend and is opening up about how he’ll make it happen.

“I want to see both Barbie and Oppenheimer . I’ll see them opening weekend,” he said per The Sydney Morning Herald . “Friday I’ll see Oppenheimer first and then Barbie on Saturday.”

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Cruise has made it no secret of his intentions to hit the Cineplex to see Oppenheimer and Barbie and recently showed off his tickets as proof .

“This summer is full of amazing movies to see in theaters,” he tweeted. “Congratulations, Harrison Ford, on 40 years of Indy and one of the most iconic characters in history. I love a double feature, and it doesn’t get more explosive (or more pink) than one with Oppenheimer and Barbie .”

This summer is full of amazing movies to see in theaters. Congratulations, Harrison Ford, on 40 years of Indy and one of the most iconic characters in history. I love a double feature, and it doesn't get more explosive (or more pink) than one with Oppenheimer and Barbie. pic.twitter.com/udWHHj4fAe — Tom Cruise (@TomCruise) June 28, 2023

Cruise is highly credited for bringing audiences back to theaters when Top Gun: Maverick broke records over the summer. The actor is also preparing to hit theaters again as Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One opens July 12, a week before Oppenheimer and Barbie .

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Tom Cruise Reveals If He's Seeing 'Barbie' or 'Oppenheimer' First

By Stephen Andrew - July 7, 2023 03:43 pm EDT

Tom Cruise has revealed if he'll be seeing Barbie or Oppenheimer first when both films open on July 21. Speaking to the  The Sydney Morning Herald , Crusie confessed, "I want to see both Barbie and Oppenheimer." He then added,"I'll see them opening weekend. Friday I'll see Oppenheimer first and then Barbie on Saturday."

Going on to share his love of experiencing movies in a theater, Cruise offered, "I grew up seeing movies on the big screen. That's how I make them, and I like that experience." He continued, "It's immersive, and to have that as a community and an industry, it's important. I still go the movies." Notably, Barbie and Oppenheimer open a little over a week after Cruise's new movie  Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One  premieres in theaters on July 12. It was previously alleged, per Screen Rant , that Crusie was upset over the two films taking screens away from his, though the claims were never proven.

This summer is full of amazing movies to see in theaters. Congratulations, Harrison Ford, on 40 years of Indy and one of the most iconic characters in history. I love a double feature, and it doesn't get more explosive (or more pink) than one with Oppenheimer and Barbie. pic.twitter.com/udWHHj4fAe — Tom Cruise (@TomCruise) June 28, 2023

Barbie stars Margot Robbie as the iconic doll , along with Ryan Gosling as Ken. The film follows the pair as they set out on an adventure in the real world, after leaving Barbie Land. Other stars of the film include America Ferrera, Kate McKinnon, Issa Rae, Rhea Perlman, and Will Ferrell, among others. The movie is directed by Greta Gerwig, from a script she wrote with Noah Baumbach.

Oppenheimer is a biopic-thriller about the life of J. Robert Oppenheimer, the theoretical physicist who helped develop the first nuclear weapons. It is directed, written and co-produced by Christopher Nolan, and is based on the 2005 biography American Prometheus by Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin. Cillian Murphy stars as Oppenheimer, with additional performances from a star-studded cast that includes Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, Robert Downey Jr., and Florence Pugh.

In addition to Cruise, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One brings back Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, and Vanessa Kirby. Esai Morales plays the villain this time around, and   Agent Carter  star Hayley Atwell  is added as well. Other franchise newcomers include Frederick Schmidt, Sea Whigham, Pom Klementieff, and Cary Elwes.

M:I – Dead Reckoning Part One is directed by Christopher McQuarrie, from a script he wrote with Erik Jendresen. It marks the seventh movie in the film franchise after Mission: Impossible (1996), Mission: Impossible 2 (2000), Mission: Impossible III (2006), Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (2011), Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (2015), and Mission: Impossible – Fallout (2018). Next up will be Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part Two , which is currently in post-production and scheduled to be released in 2024.

• Ryan Gosling Brings His Sister as His Date to 'Barbie' Toronto Premiere
• Christopher Nolan's 'Oppenheimer' Trailer Released
• 'Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part 1' Trailer Shows Tom Cruise Crashing a Train

Screen Rant

Tom cruise breaks silence on barbie vs oppenheimer: "it doesn't get more explosive (or more pink)".

Tom Cruise shares his thoughts on the summer's upcoming movies, including Barbie vs. Oppenheimer, which he is also reportedly angry about.

Tom Cruise shares his thoughts on the slate of summer blockbusters, including Barbie vs. Oppenheimer . The summer of 2023 will be packed with big theatrical movies, including Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny on June 30 and Cruise's own extravaganza, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One , on July 12. A week later, the highly anticipated box office battle between Barbie and Oppenheimer will go down on July 21.Today, Tom Cruise took to Twitter to comment on the many exciting movies coming to theaters this summer, including Barbie and Oppenheimer . The action star also congratulated Harrison Ford on 40 years of playing one of the most iconic characters in cinematic history – Indiana Jones. Cruise also included pictures of him and Mission: Impossible director Christopher McQuarrie in front of the summer movie posters with their tickets. Check out Cruise's post below:

Tom Cruise Isn't All Happy About Barbie Vs. Oppenheimer

Though Cruise " loves a double feature ," he isn't thrilled the big box office battle is happening one week after his own blockbuster releases in theaters. Per a report, Cruise is angry at Oppenheimer and Barbie for taking Mission: Impossible 7 's screens . While Cruise's movie will have all the IMAX screens for the first week of its release, Oppenheimer will take them all for the first three weeks of its release per an exclusive deal with IMAX. The new Mission: Impossible movie also has to compete with Barbie which, according to early tracking, is expected to open bigger than Oppenheimer .

Related: 16 Summer 2023 Movies Ranked By Box Office Prediction

IMAX CEO Rich Gelfond responded to Cruise's reported anger over the summer release schedule, saying he hopes that Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One can return to IMAX after Oppenheimer finishes its exclusive three-week run. Still, the action star doesn't seem too happy about the situation, as Cruise took a jab at Oppenheimer at Mission: Impossible 7 's premiere . While Cruise appears to be causing some conflict behind-the-scenes, he, like all movie fans, also seems excited about the big box office between Barbie and Oppenheimer . However, they won't be the only two movies struggling for supremacy at the summer box office.

Source: Tom Cruise /Twitter

Key Release Dates

Mission: impossible - dead reckoning part one, oppenheimer.

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Margot Robbie "Accepted" Tom Cruise's Mission To Pose With Tickets To See Each Other's Film, And It’s So Perfect

"Mission: Accepted!"

BuzzFeed Staff

Margot Robbie is an Oscar nominee, blockbuster movie star, and perhaps most importantly a supportive industry colleague.

Margot has been out in full force alongside her costars and director Greta Gerwig to promote Barbie , which hits theaters on July 21.

Much has been made about Barbie and the film Oppenheimer opening on the same day. They're both packed with star-studded casts and were directed by notable filmmakers. Before Barbie , Greta directed Little Women and Lady Bird, while Oppenheimer director Christopher Nolan was also behind The Dark Night and Inception , among other films.

But those aren't the only two major films opening in the next few weeks. Tom Cruise's latest film, Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, opens in theaters about a week before, on July 12.

Plus, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, starring Harrison Ford and Phoebe Waller-Bridge, premiered on Friday.

All of this has some cinephiles faced with the task of choosing what films to see over the next few weeks and in which order. Online, fans planning to see Barbie and Oppenheimer as a double feature on July 21 are referring to the event as "Barbenheimer."

As for the stars of these four blockbuster films, two leads have publicly spread the love for their colleagues. On Wednesday, Tom Cruise tweeted photos of himself and Mission Impossible director Christopher McQuarrie with tickets to their competing three films.

"This summer is full of amazing movies to see in theaters. Congratulations, Harrison Ford, on 40 years of Indy and one of the most iconic characters in history. I love a double feature, and it doesn't get more explosive (or more pink) than one with Oppenheimer and Barbie ," he wrote.

This summer is full of amazing movies to see in theaters. Congratulations, Harrison Ford, on 40 years of Indy and one of the most iconic characters in history. I love a double feature, and it doesn't get more explosive (or more pink) than one with Oppenheimer and Barbie. pic.twitter.com/udWHHj4fAe — Tom Cruise (@TomCruise) June 28, 2023

Just days later, Margot and Greta followed in Tom and Christopher's footsteps by posing with tickets to their three competing films.

"Mission: Accepted!" the Barbie Twitter account wrote alongside the photos of Margot and Greta holding tickets in front of posters for Mission Impossible, Oppenheimer, and Indiana Jones .

Mission: Accepted! pic.twitter.com/DJ2gm5e4XU — Barbie Movie (@barbiethemovie) June 30, 2023

It really is a big time for movies at the theaters, and it's nice to see stars supporting one another. Now, Indiana Jones and Oppenheimer, it's your turns to hop on the ticket trend.

Share this article.

After Tom Cruise Campaigned For ‘Barbie,’ Margot Robbie Did The Same For ‘Mission: Impossible’ (And ‘Oppenheimer’)

Just as April showers brings May flowers, so too does June movie duds bring July movie… studs? OK, that could use some work, but after The Flash and Elemental , two of the biggest blockbusters to come out this month, underperformed at the box office, excitement is high for the holy trifecta of films coming out in July: Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One , Oppenheimer , and Barbie (which is also the order you should see them in).

Earlier this week , Mission: Impossible star Tom Cruise initiated “back to the movies” protocol for Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny , as well as Oppenheimer and Barbie . “I love a double feature, and it doesn’t get more explosive (or more pink) than one with Oppenheimer and Barbie ,” he tweeted, along with photos where he and director co-writer Christopher McQuarrie are standing in front of posters for the three summer films.

Barbie star Margot Robbie and filmmaker Greta Gerwig have now repaid the favor. “Mission: Accepted!” a tweet on the official Barbie movie account reads. The Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny and Oppenheimer advertisements and tickets are still there, like in Cruise’s tweet, but instead of Barbie , the pair posed with a Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One poster.

Your move, Nolan.

Mission: Accepted! pic.twitter.com/DJ2gm5e4XU — Barbie Movie (@barbiethemovie) June 30, 2023

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One comes out on July 12th, followed by Oppenheimer and Barbie on July 21st.

(Via Twitter/Barbie )

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Brooke Shields says she's glad Tom Cruise publicly criticized her antidepressant use — he accidentally brought awareness to under-discussed mental health struggles

• In 2005, Tom Cruise criticized Brooke Shields' use of antidepressants for postpartum depression.
• At the 2024 PHM HealthFront, Brooke Shields said his comments "backfired."
• She said the controversy brought more mainstream awareness around postpartum and mental health.

In one of the most controversial moments of Tom Cruise's career , the actor criticized Brooke Shields for talking about her use of antidepressants to treat postpartum depression.

Almost 20 years later, Shields says Cruise accidentally raised awareness around the issue and drove people to fight for better treatment.

In 2005, Shields had just published her memoir "Down Came the Rain," in which she described taking Paxil, an SSRI, after the birth of her first daughter, Rowan . "I was deadened, and it terrified me because I wanted to have a baby so badly," Shields, 58, said on Wednesday at the 2024 PHM HealthFront, a two-day event for healthcare marketers and health media. "I went through IVF seven times, and so the journey was such a fraught one."

Cruise initially called Brooke Shields "irresponsible" for using antidepressants in a 2005 "Access Hollywood" interview . When he was asked to elaborate on these comments in a 2005 interview on "The Today Show," Cruise told Matt Lauer that "psychiatry is a pseudo-science" and that "drugs aren't the answer."

Promoting Scientology, Cruise opposed taking any "mind-altering antipsychotic drugs," as it goes against the religion .

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He slammed Shields for spreading "misinformation" and said "she doesn't understand the history of psychiatry" when it came to using medication.

Shields said Cruise's comments angered a lot of women

Looking back on the incident, Shields said that Cruise's comments ended up helping the cause.

"You gave women in particular — they were so angry — you gave them a reason to fight for something they didn't even know they wanted to fight for," Shields said at PHM, noting that women weren't just sticking up for her but also for themselves.

"So it actually, ironically, helped the platform because everybody was talking about it," Shields said. "It sort of backfired. Way to put it into pop culture."

Cruise later apologized to Shields

A year after his comments, Shields said, Cruise delivered a "heartfelt" apology to Shields at her house and even mailed her an annual Christmas cake for many years.

Nearly 20 years later, the conversations around postpartum and depression treatments have changed dramatically. Shields is far from the only celebrity to be open about her PPD , though she played a crucial role in advocating for more awareness around the condition.

In 2007, she testified in Congress for a bill that would require postpartum pre-screening for new mothers.

"I'm not an expert," Shields said at PHM. "I'm just a woman who's gone through that and wanted to help other women get the help that they deserve."

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Are ‘Forever Chemicals’ a Forever Problem?

The environmental protection agency says “forever chemicals” must be removed from tap water. but they lurk in much more of what we eat, drink and use..

This transcript was created using speech recognition software. While it has been reviewed by human transcribers, it may contain errors. Please review the episode audio before quoting from this transcript and email [email protected] with any questions.

From “The New York Times,” I’m Sabrina Tavernise. And this is “The Daily.”

[THEME MUSIC]

This month for the first time, the Environmental Protection Agency began to regulate a class of synthetic chemicals, known as forever chemicals, in America’s drinking water. But the chemicals, which have been linked to liver disease and other serious health problems, are in far more than just our water supply. Today, my colleague Kim Tingley explains.

It’s Wednesday, April 17.

So Kim, any time the EPA announces a regulation, I think we all sort of take notice because implicit in it is this idea that we have been exposed to something — something bad, potentially, lead or asbestos. And recently, the EPA is regulating a type of chemical known as PFAS So for those who don’t know, what are PFAS chemicals

Yeah, so PFAS stands for per and polyfluoroalkyl substances. They’re often called forever chemicals just because they persist so long in the environment and they don’t easily break down. And for that reason, we also use them in a ton of consumer products. They’re in makeup. They’re in carpet. They’re in nonstick cookware. They’re in food packaging, all sorts of things.

Yeah, I feel like I’ve been hearing about these chemicals actually for a very long time. I mean, nonstick pans, Teflon — that’s the thing that’s in my mind when I think PFAS.

Absolutely. Yeah, this class of chemicals has been around for decades. And what’s really important about this is that the EPA has decided, for the first time, to regulate them in drinking water. And that’s a ruling that stands to affect tens of millions of people.

So, help me understand where these things came from and how it’s taken so long to get to the point where we’re actually regulating them.

So, they really actually came about a long time ago. In 1938, DuPont, the people who eventually got us to Teflon, they were actually looking for a more stable kind of refrigerant. And they came upon this kind of chemical, PFAS. The thing that all PFAS chemicals have is a really strong bond between carbon atoms and fluorine atoms. This particular pairing is super strong and super durable.

They have water repellent properties. They’re stain resistant. They’re grease resistant. And they found a lot of uses for them initially in World War II. They were using them as part of their uranium enrichment process to do all these kinds of things. And then —

Well, good thing it’s Teflon.

In the 1950s is when they really started to come out as commercial products.

Even burned food won’t stick to Teflon. So it’s always easy to clean.

So, DuPont started using it in Teflon pans.

Cookware never needs scouring if it has DuPont Teflon.

And then another company, 3M also started using a kind of PFAS —

Scotchgard fabric protector. It keeps ordinary spills from becoming extraordinary stains.

— in one of their big products, Scotchgard. So you probably remember spraying that on your shoes if you want to make your shoes waterproof.

Use Scotchgard fabric protector and let your cup runneth over.

Right — miracle product, Scotchgard, Teflon. But of course, we’re talking about these chemicals because they’ve been found to pose health threats. When does that risk start to surface?

Yeah, so it’s pretty early on that DuPont and 3M start finding effects in animals in studies that they’re running in house.

Around the mid ‘60s, they start seeing that PFAS has an effect on rats. It’s increasing the liver and kidney weights of the rats. And so that seems problematic. And they keep running tests over the next decade and a half. And they try different things with different animals.

In one study, they gave monkeys really, really high levels of PFAS. And those monkeys died. And so they have a pretty strong sense that these chemicals could be dangerous. And then in 1979, they start to see that the workers that are in the plants manufacturing, working with these chemicals, that they’re starting to have higher rates of abnormal liver function. And in a Teflon plant, they had some pregnant workers that were working with these chemicals. And one of those workers in 1981 gave birth to a child who had some pretty severe birth defects.

And then by the mid 1980s, DuPont figures out that it’s not just their workers who are being exposed to these chemicals, but communities that are living in areas surrounding their Teflon plant, particularly the one in Parkersburg, West Virginia, that those communities have PFAS in their tap water.

Wow, so based on its own studies, DuPont knows its chemicals are making animals sick. They seem to be making workers sick. And now they found out that the chemicals have made their way into the water supply. What do they do with that information?

As far as we know, they didn’t do much. They certainly didn’t tell the residents of Parkersburg who were drinking that water that there was anything that they needed to be worried about.

How is that possible? I mean, setting aside the fact that DuPont is the one actually studying the health effects of its own chemicals, presumably to make sure they’re safe, we’ve seen these big, regulating agencies like the EPA and the FDA that exist in order to watch out for something exactly like this, a company that is producing something that may be harming Americans. Why weren’t they keeping a closer watch?

Yeah, so it goes kind of back to the way that we regulate chemicals in the US. It goes through an act called the Toxic Substances Control Act that’s administered by the EPA. And basically, it gives companies a lot of room to regulate themselves, in a sense. Under this act they have a responsibility to report to the EPA if they find these kinds of potential issues with a chemical. They have a responsibility to do their due diligence when they’re putting a chemical out into the environment.

But there’s really not a ton of oversight. The enforcement mechanism is that the EPA can find them. But this kind of thing can happen pretty easily where DuPont keeps going with something that they think might really be a problem and then the fine, by the time it plays out, is just a tiny fraction of what DuPont has earned from producing these chemicals. And so really, the incentive is for them to take the punishment at the end, rather than pull it out early.

So it seems like it’s just self-reporting, which is basically self-regulation in a way.

Yeah, I think that is the way a lot of advocacy groups and experts have characterized it to me, is that chemical companies are essentially regulating themselves.

So how did this danger eventually come to light? I mean, if this is in some kind of DuPont vault, what happened?

Well, there’s a couple different things that started to happen in the late ‘90s.

The community around Parkersburg, West Virginia, people had reported seeing really strange symptoms in their animals. Cows were losing their hair. They had lesions. They were behaving strangely. Some of their calves were dying. And a lot of people in the community felt like they were having health problems that just didn’t really have a good answer, mysterious sicknesses, and some cases of cancers.

And so they initiate a class action lawsuit against DuPont. As part of that class action lawsuit, DuPont, at a certain point, is forced to turn over all of their internal documentation. And so what was in the files was all of that research that we mentioned all of the studies about — animals, and workers, the birth defects. It was really the first time that the public saw what DuPont and 3M had already seen, which is the potential health harms of these chemicals.

So that seems pretty damning. I mean, what happened to the company?

So, DuPont and 3M are still able to say these were just a few workers. And they were working with high levels of the chemicals, more than a person would get drinking it in the water. And so there’s still an opportunity for this to be kind of correlation, but not causation. There’s not really a way to use that data to prove for sure that it was PFAS that caused these health problems.

In other words, the company is arguing, look, yes, these two things exist at the same time. But it doesn’t mean that one caused the other.

Exactly. And so one of the things that this class action lawsuit demands in the settlement that they eventually reach with DuPont is they want DuPont to fund a formal independent health study of the communities that are affected by this PFAS in their drinking water. And so they want DuPont to pay to figure out for sure, using the best available science, how many of these health problems are potentially related to their chemicals.

And so they ask them to pay for it. And they get together an independent group of researchers to undertake this study. And it ends up being the first — and it still might be the biggest — epidemiological study of PFAS in a community. They’ve got about 69,000 participants in this study.

Wow, that’s big.

It’s big, yeah. And what they ended up deciding was that they could confidently say that there was what they ended up calling a probable link. And so they were really confident that the chemical exposure that the study participants had experienced was linked to high cholesterol, ulcerative colitis, thyroid disease, testicular cancer, kidney cancer, and pregnancy induced hypertension.

And so those were the conditions that they were able to say, with a good degree of certainty, were related to their chemical exposure. There were others that they just didn’t have the evidence to reach a strong conclusion.

So overall, pretty substantial health effects, and kind of vindicates the communities in West Virginia that were claiming that these chemicals were really affecting their health.

Absolutely. And as the years have gone on, that was sort of just the beginning of researchers starting to understand all the different kinds of health problems that these chemicals could potentially be causing. And so since the big DuPont class action study, there’s really just been like this building and building and building of different researchers coming out with these different pieces of evidence that have accumulated to a pretty alarming picture of what some of the potential health outcomes could be.

OK, so that really kind of brings us to the present moment, when, at last, it seems the EPA is saying enough is enough. We need to regulate these things.

Yeah, it seems like the EPA has been watching this preponderance of evidence accumulate. And they’re sort of deciding that it’s a real health problem, potentially, that they need to regulate.

So the EPA has identified six of these PFAS chemicals that it’s going to regulate. But the concern that I think a lot of experts have is that this particular regulation is not going to keep PFAS out of our bodies.

We’ll be right back.

So, Kim, you just said that these regulations probably won’t keep PFAS chemicals out of our bodies. What did you mean?

Well, the EPA is talking about regulating these six kinds of PFAS. But there are actually more than 10,000 different kinds of PFAS that are already being produced and out there in the environment.

And why those six, exactly? I mean, is it because those are the ones responsible for most of the harm?

Those are the ones that the EPA has seen enough evidence about that they are confident that they are probably causing harm. But it doesn’t mean that the other ones are not also doing something similar. It’s just sort of impossible for researchers to be able to test each individual chemical compound and try to link it to a health outcome.

I talked to a lot of researchers who were involved in this area and they said that they haven’t really seen a PFAS that doesn’t have a harm, but they just don’t have information on the vast majority of these compounds.

So in other words, we just haven’t studied the rest of them enough yet to even know how harmful they actually are, which is kind of alarming.

Yeah, that’s right. And there’s just new ones coming out all the time.

Right. OK, so of the six that the EPA is actually intending to regulate, though, are those new regulations strict enough to keep these chemicals out of our bodies?

So the regulations for those six chemicals really only cover getting them out of the drinking water. And drinking water only really accounts for about 20 percent of a person’s overall PFAS exposure.

So only a fifth of the total exposure.

Yeah. There are lots of other ways that you can come into contact with PFAS. We eat PFAS, we inhale PFAS. We rub it on our skin. It’s in so many different products. And sometimes those products are not ones that you would necessarily think of. They’re in carpets. They’re in furniture. They’re in dental floss, raincoats, vinyl flooring, artificial turf. All kinds of products that you want to be either waterproof or stain resistant or both have these chemicals in them.

So, the cities and towns are going to have to figure out how to test for and monitor for these six kinds of PFAS. And then they’re also going to have to figure out how to filter them out of the water supply. I think a lot of people are concerned that this is going to be just a really expensive endeavor, and it’s also not really going to take care of the entire problem.

Right. And if you step back and really look at the bigger problem, the companies are still making these things, right? I mean, we’re running around trying to regulate this stuff at the end stage. But these things are still being dumped into the environment.

Yeah. I think it’s a huge criticism of our regulatory policy. There’s a lot of onus put on the EPA to prove that a harm has happened once the chemicals are already out there and then to regulate the chemicals. And I think that there’s a criticism that we should do things the other way around, so tougher regulations on the front end before it goes out into the environment.

And that’s what the European Union has been doing. The European Chemicals Agency puts more of the burden on companies to prove that their products and their chemicals are safe. And the European Chemicals Agency is also, right now, considering just a ban on all PFAS products.

So is that a kind of model, perhaps, of what a tough regulation could look like in the US?

There’s two sides to that question. And the first side is that a lot of people feel like it would be better if these chemical companies had to meet a higher standard of proof in terms of demonstrating that their products or their chemicals are going to be safe once they’ve been put out in the environment.

The other side is that doing that kind of upfront research can be really expensive and could potentially limit companies who are trying to innovate in that space. In terms of PFAS, specifically, this is a really important chemical for us. And a lot of the things that we use it in, there’s not necessarily a great placement at the ready that we can just swap in. And so it’s used in all sorts of really important medical devices or renewable energy industries or firefighting foam.

And in some cases, there are alternatives that might be safer that companies can use. But in other cases, they just don’t have that yet. And so PFAS is still really important to our daily lives.

Right. And that kind of leaves us in a pickle because we know these things might be harming us. Yet, we’re kind of stuck with them, at least for now. So, let me just ask you this question, Kim, which I’ve been wanting to ask you since the beginning of this episode, which is, if you’re a person who is concerned about your exposure to PFAS, what do you do?

Yeah. So this is really tricky and I asked everybody this question who I talked to. And everybody has a little bit of a different answer based on their circumstance. For me what I ended up doing was getting rid of the things that I could sort of spot and get rid of. And so I got rid of some carpeting and I checked, when I was buying my son a raincoat, that it was made by a company that didn’t use PFAS.

It’s also expensive. And so if you can afford to get a raincoat from a place that doesn’t manufacture PFAS, it’s going to cost more than if you buy the budget raincoat. And so it’s kind of unfair to put the onus on consumers in that way. And it’s also just not necessarily clear where exactly your exposure is coming from.

So I talk to people who said, well, it’s in dust, so I vacuum a lot. Or it’s in my cleaning products, so I use natural cleaning products. And so I think it’s really sort of a scattershot approach that consumers can take. But I don’t think that there is a magic approach that gets you a PFAS-free life.

So Kim, this is pretty dark, I have to say. And I think what’s frustrating is that it feels like we have these government agencies that are supposed to be protecting our health. But when you drill down here, the guidance is really more like you’re on your own. I mean, it’s hard not to just throw up your hands and say, I give up.

Yeah. I think it’s really tricky to try to know what you do with all of this information as an individual. As much as you can, you can try to limit your individual exposure. But it seems to me as though it’s at a regulatory level that meaningful change would happen, and not so much throwing out your pots and pans and getting new ones.

One thing about PFAS is just that we’re in this stage still of trying to understand exactly what it’s doing inside of us. And so there’s a certain amount of research that has to happen in order to both convince people that there’s a real problem that needs to be solved, and clean up what we’ve put out there. And so I think that we’re sort of in the middle of that arc. And I think that that’s the point at which people start looking for solutions.

Kim, thank you.

Here’s what else you should know today. On Tuesday, in day two of jury selection for the historic hush money case against Donald Trump, lawyers succeeded in selecting 7 jurors out of the 12 that are required for the criminal trial after failing to pick a single juror on Monday.

Lawyers for Trump repeatedly sought to remove potential jurors whom they argued were biased against the president. Among the reasons they cited were social media posts expressing negative views of the former President and, in one case, a video posted by a potential juror of New Yorkers celebrating Trump’s loss in the 2020 election. Once a full jury is seated, which could come as early as Friday, the criminal trial is expected to last about six weeks.

Today’s episode was produced by Clare Toeniskoetter, Shannon Lin, Summer Thomad, Stella Tan, and Jessica Cheung, with help from Sydney Harper. It was edited by Devon Taylor, fact checked by Susan Lee, contains original music by Dan Powell, Elisheba Ittoop, and Marion Lozano, and was engineered by Chris Wood.

Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly.

That’s it for The Daily. I’m Sabrina Tavernise. See you tomorrow.

• April 18, 2024   •   30:07 The Opening Days of Trump’s First Criminal Trial
• April 17, 2024   •   24:52 Are ‘Forever Chemicals’ a Forever Problem?
• April 16, 2024   •   29:29 A.I.’s Original Sin
• April 15, 2024   •   24:07 Iran’s Unprecedented Attack on Israel
• April 14, 2024   •   46:17 The Sunday Read: ‘What I Saw Working at The National Enquirer During Donald Trump’s Rise’
• April 12, 2024   •   34:23 How One Family Lost $900,000 in a Timeshare Scam
• April 11, 2024   •   28:39 The Staggering Success of Trump’s Trial Delay Tactics
• April 10, 2024   •   22:49 Trump’s Abortion Dilemma
• April 9, 2024   •   30:48 How Tesla Planted the Seeds for Its Own Potential Downfall
• April 8, 2024   •   30:28 The Eclipse Chaser
• April 7, 2024 The Sunday Read: ‘What Deathbed Visions Teach Us About Living’
• April 5, 2024   •   29:11 An Engineering Experiment to Cool the Earth

Hosted by Sabrina Tavernise

Featuring Kim Tingley

Produced by Clare Toeniskoetter ,  Shannon M. Lin ,  Summer Thomad ,  Stella Tan and Jessica Cheung

With Sydney Harper

Edited by Devon Taylor

Original music by Dan Powell ,  Elisheba Ittoop and Marion Lozano

Engineered by Chris Wood

Listen and follow The Daily Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Music

The Environmental Protection Agency has begun for the first time to regulate a class of synthetic chemicals known as “forever chemicals” in America’s drinking water.

Kim Tingley, a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine, explains how these chemicals, which have been linked to liver disease and other serious health problems, came to be in the water supply — and in many more places.

On today’s episode

Kim Tingley , a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine.

Background reading

“Forever chemicals” are everywhere. What are they doing to us?

The E.P.A. issued its rule about “forever chemicals” last week.

There are a lot of ways to listen to The Daily. Here’s how.

We aim to make transcripts available the next workday after an episode’s publication. You can find them at the top of the page.

Fact-checking by Susan Lee .

The Daily is made by Rachel Quester, Lynsea Garrison, Clare Toeniskoetter, Paige Cowett, Michael Simon Johnson, Brad Fisher, Chris Wood, Jessica Cheung, Stella Tan, Alexandra Leigh Young, Lisa Chow, Eric Krupke, Marc Georges, Luke Vander Ploeg, M.J. Davis Lin, Dan Powell, Sydney Harper, Mike Benoist, Liz O. Baylen, Asthaa Chaturvedi, Rachelle Bonja, Diana Nguyen, Marion Lozano, Corey Schreppel, Rob Szypko, Elisheba Ittoop, Mooj Zadie, Patricia Willens, Rowan Niemisto, Jody Becker, Rikki Novetsky, John Ketchum, Nina Feldman, Will Reid, Carlos Prieto, Ben Calhoun, Susan Lee, Lexie Diao, Mary Wilson, Alex Stern, Dan Farrell, Sophia Lanman, Shannon Lin, Diane Wong, Devon Taylor, Alyssa Moxley, Summer Thomad, Olivia Natt, Daniel Ramirez and Brendan Klinkenberg.

Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly. Special thanks to Sam Dolnick, Paula Szuchman, Lisa Tobin, Larissa Anderson, Julia Simon, Sofia Milan, Mahima Chablani, Elizabeth Davis-Moorer, Jeffrey Miranda, Renan Borelli, Maddy Masiello, Isabella Anderson and Nina Lassam.

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