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BOX OFFICE Spain

Ocho apellidos vascos is the most seen Spanish film in history

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- With 6.5 million spectators, the comedy by Emilio Martínez-Lázaro has exceeded The Others by Alejandro Amenábar

Ocho apellidos vascos is the most seen Spanish film in history
Ocho apellidos vascos by Emilio Martínez-Lázaro

The cinema event of the season, Ocho apellidos vascos [+see also:
trailer
film profile
]
 has become the biggest Spanish cinema event ever. As of last week, the comedy directed by Emilio Martínez-Lázaro is the most seen Spanish film in history, with 6.5 million spectators, ahead of the 6.41 million recorded for The Others by Alejandro Amenábar. The film has however not yet reached the box office record (it is a matter of days) reached with €42.38 million by The Impossible [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Juan Antonio Bayona
film profile
]
 (2012) by Juan Antonio Bayona.

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With its exceptional, but not historical, debut (€2.75 million) six weeks ago, Ocho apellidos vascos has beaten one record after the next, forcing analysts in the sector to make adjustments to their predictions almost once a day. In the beginning, people thought it was just a comedy, which would blow over within a few weeks – perhaps reaching a few million in revenue. But then, the next week, revenue not only grew, it doubled, reaching €12 million. The third week it reached €20 million, then €25 million. 

Yesterday, after a more profitable weekend than when it opened (€4.2 million), the number went up to €50 million, even if nobody dares give it a definitive number. After three weeks leading the box office, taking first place ahead of films like The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (tripling its revenue), Ocho apellidos vascos has had three relatively unthreatening weeks, which could have it come close to the first position held by Avatar for its nine weeks in number one position. 

Above everything, the Ocho apellidos vascos phenomenon has given hope to the Spanish industry, especially the distribution part. Space occupied by Spanish cinema in the overall market will get better – even if it remains to be seen whether this is an isolated phenomenon or proof that audiences are returning to the cinema after a few unfortunate seasons. 

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(Translated from Spanish)

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