# Asterix at the Olympic Games
**Asterix at the Olympic Games** (*Astérix aux Jeux Olympiques*) is a 2008 French live-action comedy directed by Thomas Langmann and Frédéric Forestier, based on the characters created by [René Goscinny](https://www.edgepedia.org/rene-goscinny) and Albert Uderzo. It was the third live-action Asterix film and, at a budget of 78 million euros, the most expensive French film produced up to that time.[1](https://international.pathefilms.com/en/movies/asterix-aux-jeux-olympiques/) • [2](https://www.latribune.fr/archives/2008/IDD67D5242A3AAA3C8C12573E8004E268A/asterix-aux-jeux-olympiques-ecrase-le-box-office-francais.html/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Original title | *Astérix aux Jeux Olympiques*[1](https://international.pathefilms.com/en/movies/asterix-aux-jeux-olympiques/) |
| Directors | Thomas Langmann and Frédéric Forestier[1](https://international.pathefilms.com/en/movies/asterix-aux-jeux-olympiques/) |
| French release | January 30, 2008[1](https://international.pathefilms.com/en/movies/asterix-aux-jeux-olympiques/) |
| Budget | 78 million euros, a record for French cinema at the time[2](https://www.latribune.fr/archives/2008/IDD67D5242A3AAA3C8C12573E8004E268A/asterix-aux-jeux-olympiques-ecrase-le-box-office-francais.html/) |
| French admissions | 6,767,432[3](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm%3D61259.html) |
| Lead cast | Clovis Cornillac (Astérix), Gérard Depardieu (Obélix), Alain Delon (Julius Caesar), Benoît Poelvoorde (Brutus)[3](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm%3D61259.html) |
| Co-production | France, Spain, Germany, and Italy[4](https://cineuropa.org/en/film/75971) |
| Critical reception | 1.9/5 press average from 22 reviews; 1.4/5 from about 45,700 spectator ratings on AlloCiné[3](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm%3D61259.html) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
Asterix and Obelix travel to Greece to compete in the Olympic Games so that a young Gaul can marry the Greek princess Irina, and to defeat Brutus, who is prepared to do anything to win the Games and to eliminate his father, [Julius Caesar](https://www.edgepedia.org/julius-caesar).[1](https://international.pathefilms.com/en/movies/asterix-aux-jeux-olympiques/) The young Gaulish lover is named Lovestorix in Pathé's English-language synopsis and Alafolix in the French synopsis published by AlloCiné, reflecting different renderings of the character's name between versions.[1](https://international.pathefilms.com/en/movies/asterix-aux-jeux-olympiques/) • [3](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm%3D61259.html) Cineuropa's synopsis gives a variant setup in which the [Gauls](https://www.edgepedia.org/gauls)' village athlete Cornedurus, having been defeated by Asterix and Obelix, is entered in the Games by his superior Tullius Mordicus to take revenge, with the complication that magic potions are forbidden in competition.[4](https://cineuropa.org/en/film/75971)
## Production
The film was written by Olivier Dazat and Thomas Langmann, photographed by Thierry Arbogast, and produced by Langmann with Jean-Louis Monthieux for Pathé Production and La Petite Reine.[4](https://cineuropa.org/en/film/75971) Pathé's fact sheet lists the production year as 2007, with producers Thomas Langmann and Jean-Marc Deschamps, and copyright shared among Pathé Films, La Petite Reine, TF1 Films Production, Tripictures SA, Constantin Film, and Sorolla Films.[1](https://international.pathefilms.com/en/movies/asterix-aux-jeux-olympiques/) Financing included participation from Canal+, Spain's Sorolla Films, Banque Populaire Images 7, and the Motion Investment Group, with an Italian share of about 10 percent.[5](https://sede.mcu.gob.es/CatalogoICAA/Caratulas/86506/58/P86506.pdf)
The cast combined French stars with international names: Clovis Cornillac took over the role of Astérix from Christian Clavier, Gérard Depardieu returned as Obélix, Alain Delon played Julius Caesar, and [Benoît Poelvoorde](https://www.edgepedia.org/benoit-poelvoorde) played Brutus; the wider cast included Stéphane Rousseau, José Garcia, Dany Boon, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Bouli Lanners, Jean-Pierre Cassel, Alexandre Astier, Michaël Herbig, Vanessa Hessler, Jérôme Le Banner, and Santiago Segura.[3](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm%3D61259.html) • [1](https://international.pathefilms.com/en/movies/asterix-aux-jeux-olympiques/) • [4](https://cineuropa.org/en/film/75971)
## Release and box office
The film opened in Poland on January 25, 2008, in Belgium, France, and Greece on January 30, in Germany, Hungary, and Slovenia on January 31, and across further European territories through mid-February.[4](https://cineuropa.org/en/film/75971) In its first week of French release it drew three million spectators, topping the French box office.[2](https://www.latribune.fr/archives/2008/IDD67D5242A3AAA3C8C12573E8004E268A/asterix-aux-jeux-olympiques-ecrase-le-box-office-francais.html/) Total French admissions reached 6,767,432.[3](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm%3D61259.html) Abroad, it was the top French film released in Greece in 2008, with 466,036 admissions and 3,541,873 euros in box office receipts through distributor Rosebud Motion Pictures.[6](https://medias.unifrance.org/medias/44/145/37164/piece_jointe/bilan-2008-films-francais-a-l-international.pdf) It also appears in the top 15 of the French box office for adaptations between 2006 and 2013 compiled in a SCELF market study.[7](https://www.scelf.fr/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/etude-marche-adaptation-audiovisuelle-2014.pdf)
Despite these numbers, the film did not achieve the success its producers expected. *Le Monde* reported in March 2008 that *Astérix aux Jeux Olympiques*, directed by Langmann, son of Claude Berri, had not had the anticipated success, the one shadow in an otherwise strong year for Pathé, and noted that the stakes were heightened by the film's record 78-million-euro budget.[8](https://www.lemonde.fr/cinema/article/2008/03/19/asterix-du-pere-au-fils_1024923_3476.html)
## Reception
French critics were largely negative. AlloCiné's normalized press average was 1.9 out of 5 across 22 reviews, and spectator ratings averaged 1.4 out of 5 from more than 45,000 users.[3](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm%3D61259.html) *Le Journal du Dimanche* called it a popular family spectacle and praised the direction as an exercise in virtuosity, and *20 Minutes* found the celebrity-filled finale enjoyable, but most reviews were unfavorable.[9](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm-61259/critiques/presse/) *Le Parisien* described the gags as flat and the dialogue anemic, *Metro* found the film out of intrigue and reliant on unfunny gags, and *Télérama* judged it a mediocre spectacle, clearly less funny and lively than the second live-action Asterix film.[9](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm-61259/critiques/presse/) *Positif* criticized the sluggish pacing, the total vacuity of the screenplay, and its distance from the inventions of the original album.[9](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm-61259/critiques/presse/) Benoît Poelvoorde later said he kept a bad memory of the shoot, describing the hardest part as the solitude he experienced during production.[3](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm%3D61259.html)
## Related media
The film's merchandising included a video game of the same name released for PC, Nintendo Wii, Sony PlayStation 2, and [Nintendo DS](https://www.edgepedia.org/nintendo-ds).[10](https://omc.obta.al.uw.edu.pl/myth-survey/item-export/743) A peer-reviewed survey entry notes that the film was part of a broader effort to support the French cinema industry during the global financial crisis of the mid-to-late 2000s.[10](https://omc.obta.al.uw.edu.pl/myth-survey/item-export/743)
## References
1. [Astérix Aux Jeux Olympiques, Pathé Films International Sales](https://international.pathefilms.com/en/movies/asterix-aux-jeux-olympiques/)
2. ["Astérix aux Jeux Olympiques" écrase le box office français, La Tribune (2008)](https://www.latribune.fr/archives/2008/IDD67D5242A3AAA3C8C12573E8004E268A/asterix-aux-jeux-olympiques-ecrase-le-box-office-francais.html/)
3. [Astérix aux Jeux Olympiques, AlloCiné](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm%3D61259.html)
4. [Asterix at the Olympic Games, Cineuropa](https://cineuropa.org/en/film/75971)
5. [Spanish ICAA film registration sheet, Ministerio de Cultura de España](https://sede.mcu.gob.es/CatalogoICAA/Caratulas/86506/58/P86506.pdf)
6. [Bilan 2008: Films français à l'international, Unifrance](https://medias.unifrance.org/medias/44/145/37164/piece_jointe/bilan-2008-films-francais-a-l-international.pdf)
7. [Étude marché adaptation audiovisuelle 2014, SCELF](https://www.scelf.fr/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/etude-marche-adaptation-audiovisuelle-2014.pdf)
8. ["Astérix", du père au fils, Le Monde (2008)](https://www.lemonde.fr/cinema/article/2008/03/19/asterix-du-pere-au-fils_1024923_3476.html)
9. [Critiques presse pour le film Astérix aux Jeux Olympiques, AlloCiné](https://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm-61259/critiques/presse/)
10. [Richard Scully, entry on Asterix at the Olympic Games, Our Mythic Childhood survey](https://omc.obta.al.uw.edu.pl/myth-survey/item-export/743)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Franchise and series entries as standalone works › Superhero and comic-franchise film entries › Comic films of the 2000s*
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