After being a real failure at the box office, this French sci-fi film enjoyed a late triumph in the United States. We tell you everything!
The late success of Valérian
As with fantasy, France has distinguished itself brilliantly in Science Fiction. Of Planet of the Apes from Pierre Boule to the novels of Alain Damasio (The Outside Zone, The Stealths), through comics L’Incal by Alejandro Jodorowsky and Moebius, the literary work of René Barjavel or even the film The City of Lost Children by Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Marc Caro, we can no longer count the major works of SF Made in France. It is also to an immense monument of French SF that director Luc Besson wanted to pay homage by adapting the comic strip for the cinema Valerian and Laureline by Jean-Claude Mézières and Pierre Christie In Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets.
Published for the first time in 1967 in the journal Pilot directed by René Goscinny, the comic strip Valerian and Laureline had a major influence on American Science Fiction, starting with the saga Star Wars by George Lucas who takes many elements from it. We can also cite The Fifth Element by Luc Besson or even Independance Day by Michael Bay. However, despite the importance of Valerian and Laurelineand despite having opted for an international casting, Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets was a real box office smash, grossing only $225 million at the end of its run in October 2017 for an estimated budget of $197 million. (which does not take into account the immense sum allocated for marketing).
The financial failure of Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets placed the French production company EuropaCorp under safeguard procedurefollowing a decision by the Commercial Court dated May 2019. The French company created by Luc Besson was then bought by the American group Vine Alternative Investment. But it seems that Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets is being rehabilitated on American soil thanks to streaming. Indeed, the feature film is currently the fifth most viewed film on the Max platform in the United Statesand this while there is no news about Valerian.
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How can we explain this late success of Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets ? If, like our American colleagues from ComicBookwe like to imagine that Luc Besson’s film follows the same path of sci-fi masterpieces which first failed in theaters before becoming cult, such as Blade Runner by Ridley Scott or John Carter by Andrew Stanton, it is more likely that the presence of actor Dans DeHaan in the casting of the western series At the dawn of America (in English, American Primeval), broadcast on Netflix and which is also very successful since its launch at the beginning of January, is responsible for this highlighting of Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets.
And you, what did you think of Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets by Luc Besson? Don’t hesitate to tell us in the comments area. And if this article interested you, we recommend that you discover our selection of the greatest masterpieces of French SF.
