| Asterix at the Olympic Games | |
| Music: | Frédéric Talgorn |
| Cinematography: | Thierry Arbogast |
| Distributor: | Pathé Distribution (France, Switzerland and United Kingdom) Constantin Film (Germany and Austria)[1] Tripictures (Spain) Warner Bros. Pictures (Italy) Alternative Films (Belgium) |
| Runtime: | 117 minutes[2] |
| Language: | French Portuguese |
| Budget: | $113.5 million[3] |
| Gross: | $133 million |
Asterix at the Olympic Games (French: '''Astérix aux Jeux olympiques''') is a 2008 French fantasy comedy film co–directed by Frédéric Forestier and Thomas Langmann, and written by Langmann, Alexandre Charlot and Frank Magnier, based on characters from René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo's Astérix comic series. A sequel to (2002), it is the third installment in the Asterix film series.
At the time of its release, it was the most expensive French and non English-language film of all time.[4] The film was negatively received by critics, but performed well at several European box offices, topping charts in Poland, Spain and France.[5] It was the final film of Alain Delon before his death.[6]
Astérix and Obélix must win the Olympic Games in Greece in order to help their friend Lovesix marry Greek princess Irina. Brutus uses every trick in the book to have his own team win the game and get rid of his father Julius Caesar in the process.
The film is loosely adapted from the original Asterix at the Olympic Games comic book. The love story subplot between Lovesix and Irina was not featured in the original story. Brutus, portrayed here as a comical villain with no relation to his depictions in Asterix comics, is the main antagonist, although he was not even featured as a character in the original comic book.
There is a cameo of Adriana Karembeu as Mrs Geriatrix and Jamel Debbouze reprises his role as Numerobis. Italian comedy actor Enrico Brignano appears as a reporter.
The film featured several cameos by real-life sports stars, most prominently by Michael Schumacher as Schumix, but also Jean Todt, Zinedine Zidane, Tony Parker and Amélie Mauresmo. Professional wrestler Nathan Jones portrays Humungus. The part of Roman athlete Claudius Cornedurus (Gluteus Maximus), played by Jérôme Le Banner, was originally to be played by Jean-Claude Van Damme.[7]
Filming took place in Alicante (including the Ciudad de la Luz studio),[8] Spain and lasted six months.
The film grossed $23.4 million in France in its opening weekend, which was more than 60% of its gross in 19 territories in which the film was released. Box Office Mojo estimated $38.7 million in revenue within a week after the film was released.[9]