<Li> $177--205 million (net) </Li> <Tr> <Th> Box office </Th> <Td> $225.9 million </Td> </Tr> <P> Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (French: Valérian et la Cité des mille planètes) is a 2017 English - language French 3D space opera film written and directed by Luc Besson, and co-produced by Besson and his wife, Virginie Besson - Silla . The film is based on the French science fiction comics series Valérian and Laureline, written by Pierre Christin and illustrated by Jean - Claude Mézières . It stars Dane DeHaan as Valerian and Cara Delevingne as Laureline, with Clive Owen, Rihanna, Ethan Hawke, Herbie Hancock, Kris Wu and Rutger Hauer in supporting roles . Besson independently crowd - sourced and personally funded Valerian . With a production budget of around $180 million, it is both the most expensive non-American and independent film ever made . </P> <P> Valerian was released by STXfilms on 21 July 2017 in the United States, and in France on 26 July, by EuropaCorp . It received mixed reviews from critics, who criticized the plot and some of the casting, but praised the visuals . It grossed $225 million worldwide, but due to its high production and advertising costs, it was considered a commercial failure following its release in the United States . </P>

Who directed valerian and the city of a thousand planets