EXCLUSIVE: German director Wim Wenders has scored his best box office performance in 15 years with Japan-set, comeback feature Perfect Days, according to collated figures released by sales agent The Match Factory.
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The Tokyo-set drama, starring Japanese actor Koji Yakusho as man with a love of trees who mysteriously opts for a simply life by working as a toilet cleaner, premiered in Competition at Cannes last year where its star won Best Actor.
The movie, which is now on the nominee short-list in the Best International Feature Film category at the 2024 Academy Awards, is currently playing theatrically in Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, Switzerland, Portugal and the Baltics.
It enjoyed a strong opening in Germany on December 21 by Berlin-based distributor DCM, achieving 19,859 admissions for a $209,014 (€190,611) gross in its first week. It has since racked up a total of 171,298 admissions for a $1.8M (€1.64M) gross.
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In France, where the film is in its seventh week on release for Haut et Court, it has sold 356,109 tickets for a $2.8M (€2.57M) gross.
The film also looks set for a successful run in Italy where it opened for Lucky Red on January 4, ranking no. 2 in the charts, and has since racked up 142.007 admissions for a $1m (€962,450) gross.
“Although not all territories are out, the worldwide box office Perfect Days is $8,566,110,” announced The Match Factory in a note on the film’s box office performance.
“These numbers surpass the box office results of Wim Wenders’ feature films in the last fifteen years and mark a historical comeback of the director of Wings Of Desire and Paris, Texas,” it added, referring to his 1987 Cannes Best Director winner and 1984 Palme d’Or victor respectively.
Perfect Days opens in Spain and Sweden this weekend and is also set to launch theatrically in Norway, Denmark, Finland, Romania, Poland, Bulgaria, UK & Ireland, Latin America, Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand in the coming weeks.
Further theatrical launches are expected across 2024 given that the film sold out for The Match Factory in the wake of its buzzy Cannes premiere..
Neon is bringing the film to U.S. theaters on February 7, 2024.