After a challenging start to the year, the French box office steadied in March with 15 million tickets sold, led by Warner Bros’ Dune: Part Two.
This was a dip of just 4.8% on March 2023. While not desirable, this is much less than the dip of 16.4% in February 2024 compared to the same month the year before which was buoyed by crowd-pleasing French titles Asterix & Obelix: The Middle Kingdom and Alibi.com 2 that dominated the box office in early 2023. Disney’s Avatar: The Way Of Water was also still in cinemas through February 2023.
Admissions for the first quarter of 2024 reached 43.7 million. 10% less...
This was a dip of just 4.8% on March 2023. While not desirable, this is much less than the dip of 16.4% in February 2024 compared to the same month the year before which was buoyed by crowd-pleasing French titles Asterix & Obelix: The Middle Kingdom and Alibi.com 2 that dominated the box office in early 2023. Disney’s Avatar: The Way Of Water was also still in cinemas through February 2023.
Admissions for the first quarter of 2024 reached 43.7 million. 10% less...
- 4/3/2024
- ScreenDaily
The French box office dropped 16.4% in February compared to the same month in 2023, according to the Cnc, due to a lack of major US releases.
Some 28.6 million tickets have been sold in France since January 1, down 12.9% on the same period last year. In February, total admissions were 15m for a box office gross of €1.1bn based on an average ticket price of €7.20. In January, 13.5m tickets were sold for a gross of €97.5m.
February 2023 saw the release of French titles Asterix & Obelix: The Middle Kingdom via Pathé)and Alibi.com 2 for Studiocanal, while Disney’s Avatar: The Way Of Water...
Some 28.6 million tickets have been sold in France since January 1, down 12.9% on the same period last year. In February, total admissions were 15m for a box office gross of €1.1bn based on an average ticket price of €7.20. In January, 13.5m tickets were sold for a gross of €97.5m.
February 2023 saw the release of French titles Asterix & Obelix: The Middle Kingdom via Pathé)and Alibi.com 2 for Studiocanal, while Disney’s Avatar: The Way Of Water...
- 3/4/2024
- ScreenDaily
By admissions, the 2023 France box office was down by 13.1% on the 2017-2019 average, the smallest dip in Europe.
France’s box office hit 181 million ticket sales in 2023, powered by combination of US hits led by The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Barbie, Avatar: The Way of Water and a few French twists, according to figures from the Cnc.
This is a rise of 18.9% on 2022’s 152 million admissions.
Total box office gross is estimated to be €1.3bn based on an average ticket price of €7.2. The final total is likely to be even higher when the 2023 average ticket price is calculated mid-year.
While...
France’s box office hit 181 million ticket sales in 2023, powered by combination of US hits led by The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Barbie, Avatar: The Way of Water and a few French twists, according to figures from the Cnc.
This is a rise of 18.9% on 2022’s 152 million admissions.
Total box office gross is estimated to be €1.3bn based on an average ticket price of €7.2. The final total is likely to be even higher when the 2023 average ticket price is calculated mid-year.
While...
- 1/2/2024
- by Rebecca Leffler
- ScreenDaily
The French box office jumped 19% in 2023 with an estimated €1.3 billion ($1.4 billion) grossed from 181.2 million tickets, according to Comscore France.
Unlike in 2022, when the top 10 was exclusively dominated by U.S. movies, 2023 was bolstered by a mix of Hollywood blockbusters and French fare. Notably, “Asterix and Obelix: The Middle Kingdom” — Pathé’s big-budget comedy adventure inspired by the cult French comics — sold slightly more tickets than Christopher Nolan’s epic “Oppenheimer” from Universal.
Two other French movies ranked in the top 10: Studiocanal’s “Alibi.com 2,” the second installment of Philippe Laucheau’s comedy series riffing on adultery, and Pathé’s “The Three Musketeers: d’Artagnan” (pictured), the first of a two-part adventure saga based on Alexandre Dumas’ classic novel. The three top-grossers of 2023 in France were “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” the animated video game adaptation from Universal, Illumination and Nintendo; Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” from Warner Bros.; and James Cameron...
Unlike in 2022, when the top 10 was exclusively dominated by U.S. movies, 2023 was bolstered by a mix of Hollywood blockbusters and French fare. Notably, “Asterix and Obelix: The Middle Kingdom” — Pathé’s big-budget comedy adventure inspired by the cult French comics — sold slightly more tickets than Christopher Nolan’s epic “Oppenheimer” from Universal.
Two other French movies ranked in the top 10: Studiocanal’s “Alibi.com 2,” the second installment of Philippe Laucheau’s comedy series riffing on adultery, and Pathé’s “The Three Musketeers: d’Artagnan” (pictured), the first of a two-part adventure saga based on Alexandre Dumas’ classic novel. The three top-grossers of 2023 in France were “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” the animated video game adaptation from Universal, Illumination and Nintendo; Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” from Warner Bros.; and James Cameron...
- 1/2/2024
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Ridley Scott’s “Napoleon” is a movie that French people love to hate. But despite harsh criticism in France, the historical epic smashed the box office and grossed over $9.76 million from 1.15 million tickets sold in its first two weeks in theaters.
Ironically, “Napoleon” got the lowest score of all of Scott’s recent movies on Allociné, the local equivalent of IMDb, with 2.3 stars out of 5 from 4,659 users’ reviews, yet it’s one of Scott’s biggest hits in France. “Napoleon,” starring Joaquin Phoenix as Napoléon Bonaparte, a Corsica-born officer who became Emperor of France, and Vanessa Kirby as his wife as Joséphine de Beauharnais, world premiered in Paris on Nov. 14, a few days after the end of the SAG-AFTRA strike.
Scott’s last two movies, “The Last Duel” and “House of Gucci,” were warmly reviewed in France, and yet they sold only 425,000 and 800,000 tickets respectively during their releases there.
Ironically, “Napoleon” got the lowest score of all of Scott’s recent movies on Allociné, the local equivalent of IMDb, with 2.3 stars out of 5 from 4,659 users’ reviews, yet it’s one of Scott’s biggest hits in France. “Napoleon,” starring Joaquin Phoenix as Napoléon Bonaparte, a Corsica-born officer who became Emperor of France, and Vanessa Kirby as his wife as Joséphine de Beauharnais, world premiered in Paris on Nov. 14, a few days after the end of the SAG-AFTRA strike.
Scott’s last two movies, “The Last Duel” and “House of Gucci,” were warmly reviewed in France, and yet they sold only 425,000 and 800,000 tickets respectively during their releases there.
- 12/6/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
The early autumn slump has been reversed.
France’s box office bounced back in November following a downturn in September and October with 15.1 million ticket sales, a total gross of €108.8m based on an average ticket price of €7.2.
However, admissions were still down 19.6% from the pre-pandemic 2017-2019 average for the month.
It was enough to assure solid annual figures to date with ticket sales hitting upwards of 162.8 million admissions (€1.17bn), above 2022’s full year 152 million admissions but below the 2017-2019 pre-pandemic average of 208 million tickets per year. Estimates suggest 2023 will reach between 180-190 million.
The upswing comes after an abysmal...
France’s box office bounced back in November following a downturn in September and October with 15.1 million ticket sales, a total gross of €108.8m based on an average ticket price of €7.2.
However, admissions were still down 19.6% from the pre-pandemic 2017-2019 average for the month.
It was enough to assure solid annual figures to date with ticket sales hitting upwards of 162.8 million admissions (€1.17bn), above 2022’s full year 152 million admissions but below the 2017-2019 pre-pandemic average of 208 million tickets per year. Estimates suggest 2023 will reach between 180-190 million.
The upswing comes after an abysmal...
- 12/6/2023
- by Rebecca Leffler
- ScreenDaily
Despite being plagued by harsh reviews from French critics and a derisive retaliation by director Ridley Scott, “Napoleon” had a strong opening in France on Wednesday, grossing an estimated $1.019 million from approximately 120,000 tickets sold on its opening day on Wednesday.
The French B.O. figure includes about 8,000 tickets sold at preview screenings across France, notably in Paris where Sony Pictures held a lavish world premiere of the historical epic on Nov. 14, a few days after the end of the SAG-AFTRA strike. “Napoleon”‘s French box office on accounts for nearly a third of the $3.578 million grossed by the film internationally since debuting on Wednesday. So far, the movie has grossed $11.303 million globally.
“Napoleon,” which stars Joaquin Phoenix as the infamous French emperor and Vanessa Kirby as his wife, Joséphine de Beauharnais, has been panned by French critics over its alleged historical inaccuracies and anti-French stance. Additionally, Phoenix’s performance...
The French B.O. figure includes about 8,000 tickets sold at preview screenings across France, notably in Paris where Sony Pictures held a lavish world premiere of the historical epic on Nov. 14, a few days after the end of the SAG-AFTRA strike. “Napoleon”‘s French box office on accounts for nearly a third of the $3.578 million grossed by the film internationally since debuting on Wednesday. So far, the movie has grossed $11.303 million globally.
“Napoleon,” which stars Joaquin Phoenix as the infamous French emperor and Vanessa Kirby as his wife, Joséphine de Beauharnais, has been panned by French critics over its alleged historical inaccuracies and anti-French stance. Additionally, Phoenix’s performance...
- 11/24/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
2023 box office takings are still on track to surpass last year’s figures.
The French box office continued its autumn dip in October with 13.86 million tickets sold, down 3.9% from October 2022.
However, an impressive final week of admissions in the month and a strong line-up of films set for release in November and December mean that France’s total 2023 box office should surpass last year’s takings.
The October box office came in at €99.8m, based on an average ticket price of €7.20. This is 26.1% below the pre-pandemic 2017-2019 average.
The October figure is above September’s traditionally low box office which...
The French box office continued its autumn dip in October with 13.86 million tickets sold, down 3.9% from October 2022.
However, an impressive final week of admissions in the month and a strong line-up of films set for release in November and December mean that France’s total 2023 box office should surpass last year’s takings.
The October box office came in at €99.8m, based on an average ticket price of €7.20. This is 26.1% below the pre-pandemic 2017-2019 average.
The October figure is above September’s traditionally low box office which...
- 11/3/2023
- by Rebecca Leffler
- ScreenDaily
After braving a massive backlash over her fiery political speech at the Cannes Film Festival, French director Justine Triet has succeeded in luring wide audiences in local theaters with her Palme d’Or winning film “Anatomy of a Fall.”
A courtroom drama exploring the collapse of a marriage and a mother-son relationship, “Anatomy of a Fall” has scored the best B.O. score at the French box office for a Palme d’Or winner since “Blue is the Warmest Color,” the 2013 erotic drama starring Lea Seydoux and Adele Exarchopoulos.
The movie, which was bought by Neon at Cannes, is hotly tipped to represent France is the Oscar race. The other French films that will likely be shortlisted by this year’s French committee include “The Taste of Things”; and “Jeanne du Barry,” Maiwenn’s Versailles-set period starring Johnny Depp as Louis Xv. “The Taste of Things” and “Jeanne du Barry...
A courtroom drama exploring the collapse of a marriage and a mother-son relationship, “Anatomy of a Fall” has scored the best B.O. score at the French box office for a Palme d’Or winner since “Blue is the Warmest Color,” the 2013 erotic drama starring Lea Seydoux and Adele Exarchopoulos.
The movie, which was bought by Neon at Cannes, is hotly tipped to represent France is the Oscar race. The other French films that will likely be shortlisted by this year’s French committee include “The Taste of Things”; and “Jeanne du Barry,” Maiwenn’s Versailles-set period starring Johnny Depp as Louis Xv. “The Taste of Things” and “Jeanne du Barry...
- 8/29/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Johnny Depp’s Comeback Movie ‘Jeanne du Barry’ Rides High at French Box Office After Cannes Premiere
After being greeted with a seven-minute standing ovation on opening night of the Cannes Film Festival, Johnny Depp’s comeback movie “Jeanne du Barry,” directed by Maiwenn, has charmed French audiences after debuting in cinemas.
The costume drama, which stars Depp as the French King Louis Xv and marks his first leading role in three years, has been having a strong run at the French B.O., proving that the controversial star is still bankable. At least in France.
The film was widely released by Le Pacte on 650 screens and has grossed nearly $4.1 million from more than 550,000 tickets sold in two weeks, according to Comscore France. Currently playing across 800 screens, the film got mixed reviews in Cannes, but still has the potential of selling up to 850,000 tickets (an estimated $6.4 million), according to Eric Marti at Comscore France.
“‘Jeanne du Barry’ is doing the job, it’s a well polished film...
The costume drama, which stars Depp as the French King Louis Xv and marks his first leading role in three years, has been having a strong run at the French B.O., proving that the controversial star is still bankable. At least in France.
The film was widely released by Le Pacte on 650 screens and has grossed nearly $4.1 million from more than 550,000 tickets sold in two weeks, according to Comscore France. Currently playing across 800 screens, the film got mixed reviews in Cannes, but still has the potential of selling up to 850,000 tickets (an estimated $6.4 million), according to Eric Marti at Comscore France.
“‘Jeanne du Barry’ is doing the job, it’s a well polished film...
- 6/1/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Johnny Depp’s once white-hot career has flamed out in the wake of his many scandals, but the controversial actor has every reason to expect a movie star welcome when he hits Cannes on Tuesday for the premiere of “Jeanne du Barry.” The costume drama is Depp’s first leading role in three years, a period of time in which the star has mostly made headlines for his ongoing legal battles with ex-wife Amber Heard.
But through that tempestuous period, one that saw Depp fired from high-profile projects like the “Harry Potter” spinoff franchise “Fantastic Beasts,” Europe has remained a port in the storm. He has continued to be celebrated at film festivals throughout the continent with audiences loyally showing up to see the movies he has managed to make in between tabloid appearances. For its part, Cannes has pushed back at suggestions that it shouldn’t be offering Depp...
But through that tempestuous period, one that saw Depp fired from high-profile projects like the “Harry Potter” spinoff franchise “Fantastic Beasts,” Europe has remained a port in the storm. He has continued to be celebrated at film festivals throughout the continent with audiences loyally showing up to see the movies he has managed to make in between tabloid appearances. For its part, Cannes has pushed back at suggestions that it shouldn’t be offering Depp...
- 5/15/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy and Brent Lang
- Variety Film + TV
For the first time since 1989, there were no French movies among the country’s top 10 box officers grossers, which was exclusively dominated by U.S. studio movies.
James Cameron’s “Avatar: The Way of Water” led the 2022 chart with an estimated 54 million grossed from 7.8 million admissions since its Dec. 14 release, followed by “Top Gun: Maverick,” “Minions: the Rise of Gru,” “Jurassic World Dominion,” “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” “The Batman,” “Thor: Love and Thunder,” “Spider-Man: No Way Home” and “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore.”
But even these blockbusters failed to lift the French box office back to its pre-pandemic levels. It was down 28 on 2019.
Ticket sales reached 152 million in 2022, a 60 year-on increase, but that’s because theaters were shut down for more than 5 months in 2021. Comscore France says the French box office was impacted by several factors, including the threat of Covid variants,...
James Cameron’s “Avatar: The Way of Water” led the 2022 chart with an estimated 54 million grossed from 7.8 million admissions since its Dec. 14 release, followed by “Top Gun: Maverick,” “Minions: the Rise of Gru,” “Jurassic World Dominion,” “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” “The Batman,” “Thor: Love and Thunder,” “Spider-Man: No Way Home” and “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore.”
But even these blockbusters failed to lift the French box office back to its pre-pandemic levels. It was down 28 on 2019.
Ticket sales reached 152 million in 2022, a 60 year-on increase, but that’s because theaters were shut down for more than 5 months in 2021. Comscore France says the French box office was impacted by several factors, including the threat of Covid variants,...
- 1/2/2023
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
After an unexpectedly robust summer at the international box office, there is a near-term question mark about what will happen next: Will recovery stall due to a paucity of Hollywood tentpole movies? Or will international theatrical decouple and find new drivers to maintain the momentum?
The good news is that most of the international market’s top territories are now fully open and operating without significant restrictions on seating capacity. These include the U.K. and Ireland, Japan, France, Germany, Spain, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico and Brazil. The smaller number of territories still laboring under restrictions nevertheless include some valuable ones: China, Turkey, Argentina, Hong Kong and Russia.
Hollywood movies that have driven the recent international recovery include “Jurassic World Dominion” (611 million internationally); “Minions: The Rise of Gru” (486 million); “Thor: Love and Thunder” (405 million); and “Elvis” (126 million).
“Top Gun: Maverick,” with 1.4 billion worldwide to date, including 720 million internationally,...
The good news is that most of the international market’s top territories are now fully open and operating without significant restrictions on seating capacity. These include the U.K. and Ireland, Japan, France, Germany, Spain, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico and Brazil. The smaller number of territories still laboring under restrictions nevertheless include some valuable ones: China, Turkey, Argentina, Hong Kong and Russia.
Hollywood movies that have driven the recent international recovery include “Jurassic World Dominion” (611 million internationally); “Minions: The Rise of Gru” (486 million); “Thor: Love and Thunder” (405 million); and “Elvis” (126 million).
“Top Gun: Maverick,” with 1.4 billion worldwide to date, including 720 million internationally,...
- 9/2/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy and Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Click here to read the full article.
Netflix, it’s fair to say, owns the fall festival season. Noah Baumbach’s streamer-produced White Noise opened the Venice Film Festival on Wednesday, Aug. 31, and Sally El Hosaini’s true-life refugee tale The Swimmers, another Netflix movie, will kick off the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) on Sept. 8.
With four movies in competition in Venice — alongside White Noise, the company has Andrew Dominik’s buzzy Marilyn Monroe movie Blonde with Ana de Armas, Romain Gavras’ French drama Athena and Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Mexican epic Bardo in the running — Netflix has a decent shot at claiming its second Golden Lion after Roma in 2018. All four films, as well as TIFF titles The Swimmers, All Quiet on the Western Front, The King’s Horseman and Tyler Perry’s A Jazzman’s Blues, also look like solid award-season contenders.
Germany has already picked Edward Berger...
Netflix, it’s fair to say, owns the fall festival season. Noah Baumbach’s streamer-produced White Noise opened the Venice Film Festival on Wednesday, Aug. 31, and Sally El Hosaini’s true-life refugee tale The Swimmers, another Netflix movie, will kick off the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) on Sept. 8.
With four movies in competition in Venice — alongside White Noise, the company has Andrew Dominik’s buzzy Marilyn Monroe movie Blonde with Ana de Armas, Romain Gavras’ French drama Athena and Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Mexican epic Bardo in the running — Netflix has a decent shot at claiming its second Golden Lion after Roma in 2018. All four films, as well as TIFF titles The Swimmers, All Quiet on the Western Front, The King’s Horseman and Tyler Perry’s A Jazzman’s Blues, also look like solid award-season contenders.
Germany has already picked Edward Berger...
- 9/1/2022
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Click here to read the full article.
After two years of pandemic upheaval, one of the biggest debates in the movie industry appears to be settled.
The return of the old-fashioned blockbuster — see the supersonic success of Paramount Picture’s Top Gun: Maverick (900 million and counting) and Universal’s Jurassic World: Dominion, which is closing in on 650 million worldwide — has appeared to have convinced studios of the value of the exclusive theatrical window. The move is an about-face from the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic, when, with most cinemas shut down worldwide, the studios rushed to get their top films onto in-house platforms — Disney+, Warners’ HBO Max, Paramount+ — as soon as possible. Warners took this digital-first mantra the furthest, releasing its entire 2021 film slate, including blockbusters Dune and The Matrix Resurrections, simultaneously day-and-date in cinemas and on HBO Max in the U.S.
Then came The Batman. The first Warner Bros....
After two years of pandemic upheaval, one of the biggest debates in the movie industry appears to be settled.
The return of the old-fashioned blockbuster — see the supersonic success of Paramount Picture’s Top Gun: Maverick (900 million and counting) and Universal’s Jurassic World: Dominion, which is closing in on 650 million worldwide — has appeared to have convinced studios of the value of the exclusive theatrical window. The move is an about-face from the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic, when, with most cinemas shut down worldwide, the studios rushed to get their top films onto in-house platforms — Disney+, Warners’ HBO Max, Paramount+ — as soon as possible. Warners took this digital-first mantra the furthest, releasing its entire 2021 film slate, including blockbusters Dune and The Matrix Resurrections, simultaneously day-and-date in cinemas and on HBO Max in the U.S.
Then came The Batman. The first Warner Bros....
- 6/23/2022
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Disney’s strategic decision to forgo the theatrical release of its next big animated feature “Strange World” in France due to windowing regulations threatens to upend the country’s film industry.
That’s because the French box office is increasingly dominated by movies from U.S. studios. With ticket sales in the country already sliding, the prospect of losing the kind of family-friendly release that Disney specializes in producing is a terrifying prospect for the hard-hit industry. And French exhibitors aren’t the only ones who stand to lose if “Strange World” starts a trend of Hollywood projects skirting France’s onerous regulations dictating the length of an exclusive theatrical release in favor of premiering on streaming services. It’s also a burden on distributors and producers, who get funding from taxes levied by the National Film Board (Cnc) on theatrical admissions.
For Disney, which revealed that “Strange World” is...
That’s because the French box office is increasingly dominated by movies from U.S. studios. With ticket sales in the country already sliding, the prospect of losing the kind of family-friendly release that Disney specializes in producing is a terrifying prospect for the hard-hit industry. And French exhibitors aren’t the only ones who stand to lose if “Strange World” starts a trend of Hollywood projects skirting France’s onerous regulations dictating the length of an exclusive theatrical release in favor of premiering on streaming services. It’s also a burden on distributors and producers, who get funding from taxes levied by the National Film Board (Cnc) on theatrical admissions.
For Disney, which revealed that “Strange World” is...
- 6/8/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
After a chaotic year marked by a five-month shutdown and Covid-related restrictions, the French box office bounced back during the last quarter of 2021, bolstered by “Spider-Man: No Way Home” and a flurry of big-budgeted U.S. and French releases.
After reopening on May 18, French theaters pulled 96 million admissions — not a bad result considering that it’s just 23.2% drop from 2019, when France’s box office broke a 50-year record. Compared with 2020, when cinemas were closed for several months, tickets were up by 47.2%, according to Comscore France. Based on an estimated average of €6.75 per ticket, the French B.O. reached €648 million ($731 million).
Hollywood tentpoles dominated the top 10 highest-grossing films of 2021, starting with Sony’s “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” which sold over 5 million tickets. Universal’s “No Time to Die” and Warner Bros.’s “Dune” followed. The other U.S. titles in the top 10 are Disney’s “Encanto,” Universal’s “F9,” Warner Bros.
After reopening on May 18, French theaters pulled 96 million admissions — not a bad result considering that it’s just 23.2% drop from 2019, when France’s box office broke a 50-year record. Compared with 2020, when cinemas were closed for several months, tickets were up by 47.2%, according to Comscore France. Based on an estimated average of €6.75 per ticket, the French B.O. reached €648 million ($731 million).
Hollywood tentpoles dominated the top 10 highest-grossing films of 2021, starting with Sony’s “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” which sold over 5 million tickets. Universal’s “No Time to Die” and Warner Bros.’s “Dune” followed. The other U.S. titles in the top 10 are Disney’s “Encanto,” Universal’s “F9,” Warner Bros.
- 1/3/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
After a six-month shutdown, French cinemas reopened May 19 with a bang.
In spite of an audience capacity of 35% and a 9pm curfew, as many as 305,000 admissions were sold on Wednesday, scoring the best reopening day for cinemas in Europe, according to Comscore France.
“This score is simply exceptional and surpassed our most optimistic expectations,” says Eric Marti at Comscore. The number of admissions sold yesterday is on par with about the same day in May 2019, when “John Wick: Chapter 4” and “Aladdin” had just come out. “But back then, there was no cap on audience capacity, and no curfew,” points out Marti.
Last time they reopened after a long lockdown, in June 2020, French cinemas had Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet” to lure people back in. In May 2021, however, there wasn’t a single U.S. blockbuster. Instead, a wide-ranging roster of about 20 films drew huge lines outside cinemas from early morning...
In spite of an audience capacity of 35% and a 9pm curfew, as many as 305,000 admissions were sold on Wednesday, scoring the best reopening day for cinemas in Europe, according to Comscore France.
“This score is simply exceptional and surpassed our most optimistic expectations,” says Eric Marti at Comscore. The number of admissions sold yesterday is on par with about the same day in May 2019, when “John Wick: Chapter 4” and “Aladdin” had just come out. “But back then, there was no cap on audience capacity, and no curfew,” points out Marti.
Last time they reopened after a long lockdown, in June 2020, French cinemas had Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet” to lure people back in. In May 2021, however, there wasn’t a single U.S. blockbuster. Instead, a wide-ranging roster of about 20 films drew huge lines outside cinemas from early morning...
- 5/20/2021
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Savaged by Covid-19, global box office plunged between 57% and 76% in major markets outside the U.S., with the U.K. and Ireland leading the rout, crashing 76% against 2019, according to a Comscore study, published Wednesday.
Also hit hard were China (-70%), South Korea (-71%), and Italy and Spain (both down 72%). Russia (-60%), Japan (-61%) and New Zealand (-62%) in contrast performed relatively well by pandemic standards. Australia (-65%) and Germany and France (-69%) posted middling performances.
Two factors condition territories’ performances, Eric Marti, head of Comscore France, told Variety: The length and scale of cinema theater closures; and the strength of local industries, so the capacity of their movies to compensate for the lack of Hollywood blockbusters.
The massive hit taken by the U.K. industry is explained by “the lack of strong local titles,” Marti said. Japan, in large contrast, benefitted this year from the $313.7 million (JPY32.5 billion) accumulated gross run up through Dec.
Also hit hard were China (-70%), South Korea (-71%), and Italy and Spain (both down 72%). Russia (-60%), Japan (-61%) and New Zealand (-62%) in contrast performed relatively well by pandemic standards. Australia (-65%) and Germany and France (-69%) posted middling performances.
Two factors condition territories’ performances, Eric Marti, head of Comscore France, told Variety: The length and scale of cinema theater closures; and the strength of local industries, so the capacity of their movies to compensate for the lack of Hollywood blockbusters.
The massive hit taken by the U.K. industry is explained by “the lack of strong local titles,” Marti said. Japan, in large contrast, benefitted this year from the $313.7 million (JPY32.5 billion) accumulated gross run up through Dec.
- 12/30/2020
- by John Hopewell
- Variety Film + TV
With cameras halted, theaters shuttered and no festivals in sight, the coronavirus pandemic has sent European film distribution into free-fall, creating a domino effect that has impacted the entire ecosystem across the continent, from sales agents to exhibitors.
Although each market in Europe differs widely, most territorial distributors share the same concerns: where, how and when should their films be released? Unlike the U.S., where the industry was quick to embrace digital in the face of Covid-19, European distributors aren’t yet ready to let go of theatrical, even if that means shelving their films for a year.
“In the U.S. and Europe, the balance of power between exhibitors and distributors is completely different,” says François Clerc, a well-respected exhibitor-turned-distributor who worked for Gaumont and Studiocanal before launching his production and distribution banner, Apollo, in 2017.
“In the U.S., [power] is clearly tilted in favor of studios, whereas in Europe,...
Although each market in Europe differs widely, most territorial distributors share the same concerns: where, how and when should their films be released? Unlike the U.S., where the industry was quick to embrace digital in the face of Covid-19, European distributors aren’t yet ready to let go of theatrical, even if that means shelving their films for a year.
“In the U.S. and Europe, the balance of power between exhibitors and distributors is completely different,” says François Clerc, a well-respected exhibitor-turned-distributor who worked for Gaumont and Studiocanal before launching his production and distribution banner, Apollo, in 2017.
“In the U.S., [power] is clearly tilted in favor of studios, whereas in Europe,...
- 5/7/2020
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
As France prepares for the third stage of its coronavirus outbreak, the impact is already being felt heavily across the entertainment industry.
Of France’s 2000 theaters, 40 are now shuttered in the regions of Oise and the Morbihan, which have been hardest hit by the virus.
The French government banned indoor gatherings of more than 5,000 people on Saturday to contain the country’s coronavirus outbreak, which has so far caused four deaths and 204 contaminations as of Tuesday.
So far, events that have been canceled or postponed include the Paris half-marathon, the book fair Salon du Livre, and Juste Debout, a street dance event at the Accordhotels Arena, which is also considering canceling the concerts of Ninho, Tryo, M Pokora and Andrea Bocelli scheduled later this month.
In terms of the impact on theatrical admissions, Eric Marti, general manager for Comscore, said the B.O. in France was already down 25% since the...
Of France’s 2000 theaters, 40 are now shuttered in the regions of Oise and the Morbihan, which have been hardest hit by the virus.
The French government banned indoor gatherings of more than 5,000 people on Saturday to contain the country’s coronavirus outbreak, which has so far caused four deaths and 204 contaminations as of Tuesday.
So far, events that have been canceled or postponed include the Paris half-marathon, the book fair Salon du Livre, and Juste Debout, a street dance event at the Accordhotels Arena, which is also considering canceling the concerts of Ninho, Tryo, M Pokora and Andrea Bocelli scheduled later this month.
In terms of the impact on theatrical admissions, Eric Marti, general manager for Comscore, said the B.O. in France was already down 25% since the...
- 3/3/2020
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Even as Netflix and other platforms continued to gain ground, France’s theatrical box office broke a 50-year record with 213 million ticket sales, showing that movie-going and streaming can co-exist. Admissions increased by 6%, and the French B.O. clocked in at about €1.4 billion ($1.57 billion), a slight increase on 2018.
Hollywood titles ruled the roost, breaking a 10-year record by accounting for 59% of all theatrical admissions in France in 2019, with 125 million tickets sold. Disney alone took a 23.4% market share, with “The Lion King” topping the list of highest-grossing films and five other titles – “Avengers: Endgame,” “Frozen 2,” “Toy Story 4,” “Captain Marvel” and “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,” which is still in theaters – ranking in the top 10.
Overall, nine of the top 10 films came from U.S. studios. Besides the Disney tentpoles, they included Warner Bros.’ “Joker,” Universal’s “How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World” and Sony Pictures’ “Spider-Man: Far From Home.
Hollywood titles ruled the roost, breaking a 10-year record by accounting for 59% of all theatrical admissions in France in 2019, with 125 million tickets sold. Disney alone took a 23.4% market share, with “The Lion King” topping the list of highest-grossing films and five other titles – “Avengers: Endgame,” “Frozen 2,” “Toy Story 4,” “Captain Marvel” and “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,” which is still in theaters – ranking in the top 10.
Overall, nine of the top 10 films came from U.S. studios. Besides the Disney tentpoles, they included Warner Bros.’ “Joker,” Universal’s “How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World” and Sony Pictures’ “Spider-Man: Far From Home.
- 12/31/2019
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
Rolling off its triumph at the Berlin Film Festival where it won the Silver Bear, François Ozon’s Catholic church sexual abuse drama By “The Grace Of God” had a strong theatrical bow in France where it sold nearly 50,000 tickets on 290 screens on Feb. 20, its first day out
One of the best opening day for a French film so far this year, “By The Grace of God” is inspired by the scandal surrounding Bernard Preynat, a Roman Catholic priest who was accused of having abused scouts from 1986 to 1991, and was finally indicted in 2016 after several victims decided to file lawsuits. He is due to be tried later this year.
Produced by Eric and Nicolas Altmayer at Mandarin Cinema, “By The Grace of God” faced some legal turmoil in the run up to its release as Preynat’s lawyers attempted to delay the distribution of the film in France, arguing that...
One of the best opening day for a French film so far this year, “By The Grace of God” is inspired by the scandal surrounding Bernard Preynat, a Roman Catholic priest who was accused of having abused scouts from 1986 to 1991, and was finally indicted in 2016 after several victims decided to file lawsuits. He is due to be tried later this year.
Produced by Eric and Nicolas Altmayer at Mandarin Cinema, “By The Grace of God” faced some legal turmoil in the run up to its release as Preynat’s lawyers attempted to delay the distribution of the film in France, arguing that...
- 2/22/2019
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
In a year marked by civil unrest, strikes and the World Cup, France’s box office dropped by 3% to €1.3 billion ($1.5 billion) in 2018, according to Comscore France.
The number of theatrical admissions went down even further, by 4.3%, to 200.47 million tickets sold, but France remains Europe’s biggest nation of moviegoers, ahead of the U.K. (176 million tickets), Spain (92 million), Germany (90 million) and Italy (79 million), according to the Cnc, France’s National Film Board.
Several factors contributed to the decline in French cinema attendance, including heat waves, strikes, World Cup soccer – which had audiences glued to their TVs in the summer – and, more recently, the “Yellow Jackets” protests against the government, the National Exhibitors Assn. said in its analysis of the box office results.
Although Hollywood had six titles in the top 10 – “Incredibles 2,” which was No. 1, plus “Avengers: Infinity War,” “Black Panther,” “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom,” “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald...
The number of theatrical admissions went down even further, by 4.3%, to 200.47 million tickets sold, but France remains Europe’s biggest nation of moviegoers, ahead of the U.K. (176 million tickets), Spain (92 million), Germany (90 million) and Italy (79 million), according to the Cnc, France’s National Film Board.
Several factors contributed to the decline in French cinema attendance, including heat waves, strikes, World Cup soccer – which had audiences glued to their TVs in the summer – and, more recently, the “Yellow Jackets” protests against the government, the National Exhibitors Assn. said in its analysis of the box office results.
Although Hollywood had six titles in the top 10 – “Incredibles 2,” which was No. 1, plus “Avengers: Infinity War,” “Black Panther,” “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom,” “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald...
- 1/4/2019
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
After recording its third-highest number in the last 50 years in 2017, French theatrical admissions are on track for a 4% drop this year, with an estimated 201 million sold. In dollar terms, however, the French box office is expected to clock in at about €1.3 billion ($1.5 billion), on par with last year, bolstered by the increase of ticket sales for premium large formats such as Imax, Dolby Cinema and 4Dx.
While fewer Hollywood blockbusters drew in French audiences compared with last year, two domestic films managed to sell more than 5 million tickets (grossing more than $37 million each) and four ranked in the top 10. A pair of French comedies released by Pathé, “Les Tuche 3” and Dany Boon’s “La ch’tite famille,” ranked second and third, behind Disney’s “Incredibles 2,” which took in about $44.5 million.
The other top-grossing French films of 2018 were Gilles Lellouche’s “Sink or Swim” (pictured), a star-driven dramedy about a men’s synchronized swimming team,...
While fewer Hollywood blockbusters drew in French audiences compared with last year, two domestic films managed to sell more than 5 million tickets (grossing more than $37 million each) and four ranked in the top 10. A pair of French comedies released by Pathé, “Les Tuche 3” and Dany Boon’s “La ch’tite famille,” ranked second and third, behind Disney’s “Incredibles 2,” which took in about $44.5 million.
The other top-grossing French films of 2018 were Gilles Lellouche’s “Sink or Swim” (pictured), a star-driven dramedy about a men’s synchronized swimming team,...
- 12/28/2018
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
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