Cinema attendance picks up again at the beginning of 2023, and in particular thanks to French comedies. Asterix and Obelix: The Middle Kingdom AND Alibi.com 2 they are at the origin of a good number of entries in dark rooms.
Philippe Lacheau’s new comedy is the pleasant surprise of this first quarter. With already 3.5 million tickets sold since its premiere on February 8 and more than 4,800 viewers per print, the film is unquestionably a sellout.
It is also the latest feature film taken from the adventures of Asterix, signed by Guillaume Canet, which rises with the crown of the greatest French success of the year with 5 million admissions on the billboard.
Figures that do not detract from the boxes of American blockbusters. Avatar: The Path of Water remains unsinkable and creed III it took first place at the French box office last week by surpassing one million admissions. scream VI has just made a breakthrough in second position but French cinema does not admit defeat: my crime François Ozon is third, Alibi.com 2 clings to fourth place and the small victoriesled by Michel Blanc and Julia Piaton, is fifth.
The market recovers, “step by step”
“The strength of French cinema is that there is a very wide offer for the public, from the most auteur films to the most popular films”, deciphers Marc-Olivier Sebbag, general delegate of the National Federation of French Cinemas.
“This is what makes France recover tickets,” he concludes. “The sector is recovering step by step.”
Because it is enough for professionals to breathe a sigh of relief, after a very difficult fourth quarter: September 2022 was the worst September in 40 years in terms of darkroom revenue, excluding the pandemic.
It still has 15% to go to return to pre-Covid-19 cinema attendance levels. But all the lights are green. The Three Musketeers: D’Artagnan, based on the work of Alexandre Dumas, is the next secret weapon of French cinema. This feature film by Martin Bourboulon, starring a three-star cast (François Civil, Vincent Cassel, Romain Duris, Pio Marmaï and Eva Green) is expected in theaters on April 5.
Source: BFM TV
