A little something extra: the success of Artus' comedy in France is confirmed

With 930,000 admissions in the first weekend, it is the second best start of the year after that of Dune 2. (Source: Le Film Français)

Wednesday, A little something extra recorded a great start. 252,000 spectators attended 455 cinemas, which represents a success for the first production ofArtus : we hadn't seen better “first day France” for a French comedy since Welcome to the Ch'tis by Dany Boon! Because counting its previews, we even climb to nearly 280,000 vouchers exchanged.

It's better than the beginnings ofUntouchables Or What have we done to the good Lord?, whose number of tickets sold was around 200,000 on the Wednesday of their release. Knowing that these three films ended their run with between 12 and 20 million admissions, this suggests impressive results over time for this touching comedy about disability. Unless this start was mainly driven by the public holiday? By releasing on May 1, a date when the majority of French people do not work, a family comedy can record high scores, then see its ticket average collapse afterwards…

What did not happen to Artus, who saw the public continues to make the trip throughout the weekend, ending Sunday evening with 929,814 curious people moved, an excellent average of 2,044 people per copy. Exit facing him, The Fall Guythe action comedy starring the popular Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt, was seen by 272,585 spectators in 606 theaters in France.

A little something extra did not record the best start of the year 2024, but it is not far from it, and its opponent from Hollywood was offered on 994 screens upon its release. Dune – second part recorded 1,126,873 entries on February 28, before reaching 4 million cumulatively.

Last year, a French film did better, but it was based on successful comics: Asterix & Obelix: The Middle Kingdom attracted 1.6 million curious people at the start, in 772 cinemas. And in 2022, the only productions to debut beyond 900,000 tickets were American,Avatar 2 has Thor 4.

A little something extra has clearly found its audience, which is all the more remarkable since it was supported by an independent company, Pan Distribution. Recently, this distributor has made noise thanks to the “buzz” TikTok generated around their adaptation of Consentbut in the end, this drama ended its run at 600,000 admissions, which was a good score, but without breaking any records.

Meeting with Artus, who is a hit thanks to A little thing in addition

Pan's competitors must be biting their fingers, Artus having revealed to us that by seeking to climb A little something extrahe had seen producers and distributors reply to him that “the public did not want to see disabled people in the cinema”.

“Yes, indeed, it was complicated, he explained to First just before its release. What surprised me the most was how openly I was told things: that people didn't want to see disabled people in the cinema! These interlocutors did not even try to cover all this behind false excuses. We wanted to finance my first film but not with this population! But it's a blessing in disguise because, in the end, I was able to count on the best possible partners who offered me the means to make this film and who invested fully. Because A little something extra could never have seen the light of day without a united team.”

Recognizing the influence of our happy daysby Olivier Nakache and Eric Tolédano, on his first film, Artus also confides the importance in his eyes of having been able “test” his comedy in public:

“I have multiplied the test screenings. And again, it seems crazy to me that we don't do it more in the cinema. It would never occur to any comedian to go on stage without having first prepared his show May in the cinema, yes! While this is where you can, for example, cut off certain valves not because they are disturbing but because you see that they are a failure. I needed to hear these reactions. And without these test projects, I would never have obtained the film as it exists. And if I have the chance to make more, I will do it again, as Dupontel and others do.

Here is the French box office from Wednesday May 1 to Sunday May 5, 2024: