While American screenwriters conclude their strike, actors and actresses in Hollywood continue shaping their fate by negotiating with major studios and streaming platforms. Cinema is on the mend, gradually leaving behind the difficult period that affected audiences. Prospects for Spanish cinema look promising, yet releases in the United States remain unpredictable and volatile.
Campeonex case
The revenue for Campeonex, released in its fifth week at the end of September, surpassed 10 million euros in Spain. It drew more than one and a half million viewers and generated additional value through music video views on YouTube and other digital platforms, with the title track amassing about 22 million views. Javier Fesser previously directed Campeones in 2018, a project that won the Goya Award for best film and achieved notable profitability, earning approximately 18.5 million euros from a 4.5 million euro budget. The cost of Campeonex now stands at more than double that of the earlier film, yet it has already become the most-watched Spanish film of 2023, eclipsing Santiago Segura’s latest comedy Vacaciones de verano, which ranked second this year [citation: Spanish box office data].
Close Your Eyes
Close Your Eyes represents a stark contrast to Campeonex in every respect. It shows how Spanish cinema can struggle to gain traction despite its prestige or popularity, with notable exceptions from celebrated auteurs such as Pedro Almodóvar. The work of Victor Erice, released in France ahead of Spain, surprised audiences by holding onto a substantial share even as foreign productions saw a drop in attendance. In France, the film entered with 200,000 euros in its first weekend while only 72 copies were distributed. Worldwide, distribution remained modest in Spain with 101 total copies, yet Erice’s three-hour, intricate narrative managed to secure a tenth place in its first weekend rankings. American productions like The Creator and Saw were soon eclipsed as Erice’s film surpassed 90,000 euros in its second weekend in theaters [citation: European box office tallies].
The current box office figures are slightly distorted by cinema attendance declines ahead of a major film festival held from October 2 to 5, when tickets are often discounted. The shift in audience behavior during festival periods explains part of the volatility and should be considered when comparing with mainstream American cinema [citation: festival attendance report].
Creative
The Creator held the top spot briefly before being overtaken, and The Exorcist Believer has generated substantial revenue since its premiere. The Disney sci-fi production directed by Gareth Edwards was released on 488 screens, nearly four times the size of Erice’s release, highlighting the different scales at play in contemporary distribution models [citation: studio release data].
Luck Shot
Other smaller Spanish and European productions adapt to the current climate or even rise above it. Woody Allen’s latest film, A Strike of Luck, leans more towards French cinema in its sensibility than American. The filmmaker behind Manhattan has faced personal and public scrutiny, yet the movie, released on September 29, has already grossed around 300,000 euros in Spain and distributed across nearly 200 theaters, including a strong showing in Barcelona. There is no release date yet in the United States, reflecting the staggered nature of international launches [citation: European release report].
The Girls Are Fine
The Girls Are Fine, a debut behind the camera for actress Itsaso Arana, earned over 50,000 euros in its first weekend. This comes after an August release that achieved 308,000 euros, while Creature, produced by Elena Martín, arrived two weeks later and pulled in around 150,000 euros. The horror genre continues to wield strong appeal for audiences and investment, with The Nun 2 reaching two million euros in its first weekend and The Exorcist Believer generating about 940 thousand euros on its opening. Sitges, the renowned film festival, remains a focal point for genre fans amid these trends [citation: festival market report].
All of this unfolds as the so-called Barbenheimer moment, a once-in-a-generation event that combined Barbie and Oppenheimer to produce record global revenues, remains far in the rearview mirror. Barbie and Oppenheimer achieved exceptional results in roughly three months, a benchmark that occurs only rarely in the industry [citation: global box office analysis].