Explained: What is the #NoBarbenheimer trend in Japan? Details explored as WB faces backlash

The Barbenheimer trend is quite famous now, especially after the mammoth success of both Barbie and Oppenheimer around the world. However, in Japan, the completely opposite, #NoBarbenheimer, has been trending all this while. The issue was more limited to the country itself, but following the public criticism of Warner Bros. America by WB's Japanese wing recently drew the limelight to the issue.

The trend of Barbenheimer emerged due to the clashing release dates of Barbie and Oppenheimer. The fact that the two films were contrasting in both storylines and themes, made it something fun for the fans. This snowballing movement also led both films to do extremely well at the box office as both set records for the years to come. However, the merging of these two films is not something very light in Japan, which suffered the horror of WWII and the atomic bomb, the subject of Oppenheimer.

The Japanese wing of WB posted a statement on their website on Monday, criticizing WB America for reacting to the Barbenheimer posts. These posts allegedly hurt the sentiments of the Japanese. The official US wing soon issued an apology and clarified that the tag is not an official one. Netizens also took to Twitter to call out WB for their tweet.

The hashtag #NoBarbenheimer was used in recent days in Japan as a way of protest against the Barbie X Oppenheimer trend. The trend allegedly reduces the gravity of the situation.

---

What is the problem with the Barbenheimer trend in Japan?

The question of why #NoBarbenheimer is trending in Japan and why it is a taboo has arisen anytime people heard or read the same. This goes back to the topic of Oppenheimer, which is set around the infamous Manhattan Project, which led to the development of the atomic bomb. This bomb went on to destroy Hiroshima and Nagasaki and is still considered one of the most infamous attacks in human history.

Of course, this went on to end the war, but Japan suffered a disaster of cataclysmic grade. This has made the atomic bomb a taboo subject in the country, which is entirely understandable.

With the merging of Oppenheimer with the fun and colorful Barbie, the gravity of the movie is reduced significantly, which is not widely accepted by the Japanese. Additionally, Oppenheimer has not yet been released in Japan, and there is no guarantee that it will indeed release there.

The Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombing killed as many as 250,000 people in Japan.

After being called out for reacting to the Barbehimer artworks, WB US responded with an apology, saying:

"We consider it extremely regrettable that the official account of the American headquarters for the movie ‘Barbie’ reacted to the social media postings of ‘Barbenheimer’ fans,...We take this situation very seriously. We are asking the U.S. headquarters to take appropriate action. We apologize to those who were offended by this series of inconsiderate reactions. Warner Bros Japan."

The anti-Oppenheimer talks have also been going around in Japan over the past few months, with the decision still pending about the movie's release.

Apart from Japan, Oppenheimer has also drawn criticism in India, where there were protests for using Hindu scriptures in a bad light. The film has not been banned or delayed, however.

Oppenheimer and Barbie are currently out in the theatres.