French box office: excellent figures for summer 2026

With 17.5 million spectators in July alone, an increase of 22.6% over one year, French cinemas had an exceptional summer of 2026, driven by Spider-Man, The Odyssey and some great French successes.

Strong heat, a Nolan phenomenon, particularly attractive children’s films and, of course, the Tom Holland-Zendaya couple: the ideal combination of an excellent vintage in French cinemas.

In the heart of summer 2026, cinemas in France recorded an average of 640,000 admissions per day, with several days even above a million (July 29, August 1 and 2). “These attendance levels are mind-blowingrejoices Stéphane Landfried, responsible for development and technical issues at the National Federation of French Cinemas (FNCF), quoted by AFP. The month of July was particularly spectacular, with 17.53 million spectators in French cinemas, an increase of 22.6% compared to July 2025. A performance all the more remarkable given that last summer could also count on a Jurassic Worlda new Superman And Fantastic Four to shine.

But this year, two big locomotives have particularly pulled the market upwards: Spider-Man: Brand New Day And The Odyssey. The two behemoths have just crossed the 7 million admissions mark and are now at the top of the 2026 French box office.

But beyond these two blockbusters, attendance was also boosted by family cinema: 4.5 million admissions for Toy Story 5or even 3 million for Minions 3 and already 1.5 million for PAW Patrol: Mission Dino.

French cinema is not left out. From the Comédie-Françaiseworn in particular by Pauline Clément, and the surprise Fallen from the sky by Mohamed Hamidi both crossed the million admissions mark. But the big success ultimately came from the diptych The Battle of Gaullewhich has managed to sustain itself to exceed 5 million after two months of operation.

Result: six of the ten biggest hits of the year 2026 are, at this stage, films released this summer. A summer domination which testifies to the scale of the phenomenon.

The week from July 29 to August 4 set a particularly spectacular record: 6.4 million people went to the cinema in France. Never seen since “25 years” at this time of year, according to Eric Marti, general manager of Rentrak France, also quoted by AFP.

The repeated scorching temperatures are probably not unrelated to this influx towards air-conditioned dark rooms. But for Eric Marti, the phenomenon is above all structural: “The market needed to renew itself because it had been transformed; American studios had to start producing films that corresponded to what was expected in theaters.”

And the dynamic could continue. Since January 1, French cinemas have recorded 107.98 million admissions, or 20.5% more than over the same period in 2025 and 4.2% more than in 2024.

Enough to make the forecasts particularly optimistic for the end of the year. With again Les Miserablesa new Hunger Games and above all Avengers: Doomsday And Dune: Part Three expected in the coming months, Eric Marti estimates that attendance could reach 185 to 190 million cumulative entries this year. Which would be the best result since the pandemic.

And the trend is global: in the United States too, the summer box office is particularly dynamic, with the $4 billion revenue mark crossed over the period (from the beginning of May to the beginning of September). American operators even hope to exceed $10 billion in revenue over the whole of 2026. Again, this would be a first since the pandemic!