In September, one French comedy charmed Italian audiences, while another drew crowds in Spain and a thriller made its mark in theaters in Australia.
In this month's news, one French production clocked up over 60,000 moviegoers in theaters outside France.
| # | Title | Admissions | B. O. Revenues (€) | No. of Prints | No. of Countries | Total Admissions |
| 1 | The Best is Yet to Come | 60,992 | 373,629 | 322 | 3 | 243,633 |
| 2 | Arab Blues | 43,204 | 272,703 | 279 | 6 | 146,012 |
| 3 | The Translators | 29,500 | 242,034 | 72 | 5 | 252,607 |
| 4 | Spread Your Wings | 28,660 | 62,576 | 368 | 3 | 335,123 |
| 5 | Les Misérables | 27,177 | 204,553 | 167 | 7 | 659,544 |
| 6 | Terra Willy | 25,084 | 210,320 | 220 | 2 | 859,260 |
| 7 | A Friendly Tale | 24,289 | 149,134 | 149 | 3 | 24,289 |
| 8 | Cold Blood Legacy | 22,790 | 93,332 | NC | 1 | 71,985 |
| 9 | Summer of 85 | 21,075 | 190,349 | 59 | 4 | 34,586 |
| 10 | A Good Doctor | 19,321 | 113,824 | 221 | 2 | 88,771 |
| 11 | La Belle Epoque | 15 120 | 139,658 | 99 | 6 | 941,886 |
| 12 | Two of Us | 12 655 | 115,474 | 123 | 5 | 27,599 |
| 13 | Papicha | 11,847 | 86,049 | 72 | 5 | 70,919 |
| 14 | Hate | 11,829 | 93,260 | 119 | 1 | 1,150,501 |
| 15 | Yakari, A Spectacular Journey | 10,615 | 109,382 | 72 | 2 | 37,271 |
| 16 | Night Shift | 10,371 | 102,941 | 63 | 2 | 10,371 |
| 17 | Portrait of a Lady on Fire | 9,553 | 31,236 | 78 | 8 | 1,427,260 |
| 18 | An Officer and a Spy | 8,870 | 74,020 | 99 | 7 | 1,397,820 |
| 19 | My Donkey, My Lover & I | 8,855 | 85,618 | 45 | 2 | 8,855 |
| 20 | Small Country: An African Childhood | 8,759 | 77,191 | 52 | 3 | 14,085 |
The month of September saw French films attracting a total of 980,000 admissions in international theaters (€6.5 million in ticket sales) thanks to the performance of around 200 titles, with majority-French productions accounting for 58% of all admissions (567,000 tickets sold, representing €3.9 million). For the first time since the reopening of movie theaters, our monthly figures show a marked downturn compared to last month (-3%), and are equivalent to just two thirds of the results for September 2019, when two titles exceeded 300,000 spectators.
The Best is Yet to Come has broken into our Top 3 this month for the first time, snatching first place from Arab Blues, which had achieved the same feat in August. The film's release in Italy had been originally slated for the spring, but due to the closure of theaters its distributor was forced to cancel, then reschedule, its opening. To pave the way for the its release during a period that is generally lacking in new titles, the distributor of the drama by the Delaporte/De La Patellière directing duo presented exclusive screenings throughout the summer in open-air theaters. On September 17, The Best is Yet to Come opened in Italy in 300 sites—the biggest release offered this title in any market outside France, and also the biggest release of the week. It jumped straight to third place at the box office, bolstered by 29,000 ticket sales (€170,500), making it the best opening of all of the new films released that week, as well as the film's most successful opening outside France and the second best opening for a majority-French production in Italy since the start of 2020, after Spread Your Wings (102,000 admissions and €561,000). By the end of the month, it had raked in 57,000 admissions and €328,000, and is still showing in over 220 sites. The Best is Yet to Come has already won over 244,000 movie-lovers around the world (taking €1.7 million), excluding France, and is currently pursuing its international run in the United Arab Emirates.
Last month's leading title in our charts dropped back to second place in September. Arab Blues began its international rollout in Spain, where it registered 10,000 spectators—the best opening of all the French titles released in Spain in the summer, and the film's second best debut outside France after Germany, where after 9 weeks on the screens, it is still showing in 70 theaters and is credited with more than 51,000 admissions (€401,000). Thanks to a triumphant opening week, it was showing in 13 additional sites the following weekend, reaching a total of 23,000 tickets sold by the end of September (€134,500). In both of these European markets, this debut film by Manele Labidi ranks as the best-performing French title of the summer season. Arab Blues has already garnered 146,000 admissions (€1.1 million) in around fifteen foreign markets, and is soon to hit theaters in Italy and Mexico.
In Australia, even though The Translators was launched in just a handful of theaters (17), it has succeeded in generating AUD$121,500 (around 8,000 admissions), which is an impressive achievement that enabled it to be placed in 10th position in the local charts and the top position among limited releases. Furthermore, while the average earnings per theater of the Top 20 titles was AUD$2,000, The Translators posted an impressive average of AUD$7,000 (over 500 tickets sold per site). By the end of its second week, and taking into account a large number of premiere screenings, this thriller now boasts a running total of AUD$362,000, representing around 25,000 admissions—which only two other films released in Australia in 2020 have achieved to date: La Belle Epoque (AUD$530,000, 36,500 admissions) and SamSam (AUD$416,500, 29,000 admissions). With over 253,000 moviegoers having seen the film outside France (€1.7 million in box office revenues), including 54,500 in Japan (€593,500) and 25,000 in Greece (€156,500), The Translators is scheduled for upcoming release in Serbia.
Other outstanding performances in September outside the Top 3 titles:
- In the United Kingdom, Les Misérables enjoyed the most ambitious release it has ever been offered (133 theaters), registering £163,000 (23,000 admissions) by the end of September and ranking as the best performance by a French film since the reopening of theaters in the UK.
- Terra Willy benefited from the Labour Day vacation in Australia and New Zealand, posting the most successful opening for a French film so far in 2020 in both markets, with box office takings of AUD$272,000 (around 19,000 admissions) and NZ$80,000 (6,500 admissions). The film's earnings rose by almost 70% the following weekend!
This report is based on results recorded on October 8, 2020. As the figures relating to film releases are continuously updated, the graphics generated automatically on our website will differ from the chart featured in this article.
