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This chart shows the fifteen French films with the highest number of cinema admissions from 1945 to 2024. As of May 22, 2024, it was still Danny Boon with Bienvenue chez les Ch’tis (2008) at the top of the ranking with more than 20.4 million admissions, nearly one million more than its runner-up Intouchables. The French seem to flock massively to theaters for the releases of major franchises like Astérix and Obélix and the big names of French cinema.

French cinema still resists the invader

Bienvenue chez les Ch’tis and Intouchables are not only the biggest successes of French cinema in France but also the biggest successes of cinema in France overall, ranking just behind James Cameron’s Titanic in terms of admissions ( 21.8 million). In addition to these two films, two other French films can be found in the ranking of the 15 highest admissions in France with Astérix et Obélix: mission Cléopâtre ( 14.4 million) and Les Visiteurs ( 13.67 million). Since 2013, the market share of French films has gradually caught up with that of American films at the box office in France. In 2020 and 2022, French films even generated more admissions than American films. It remains to be seen whether this upturn in the French film industry can continue in the coming years, especially in the face of the ever-growing competition from streaming services.

Video streaming increasingly popular in France

In the second quarter of 2022, Netflix alone had more than 220 million subscribers worldwide. Between Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video, OCS, and MyCanal, video streaming services are plentiful in France, especially as other platforms like HBO and Paramount are preparing to enter the French market, providing consumers with films they can watch at home. Although the various lockdowns played a major role in this decline, there was a drastic drop in cinema admissions in France in 2022, notably due to the explosion of streaming services. It remains to be seen whether, under pressure from these platforms, the government will be able to continue enforcing the media chronology. The media chronology is a measure regulating the timing of a film’s release and distribution, particularly the delay between its theatrical release and its availability on streaming services. Recently, Disney has been particularly critical of this measure, which notably prevents it from releasing a film simultaneously in theaters and on its platform.