During the weekend of 25 to 27 September 2026, Spanish cinemas sold 613,240 tickets for La bola negra. The film took €4,673,201 in three days and led the country's box office. Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi's production also became Spain's second-biggest release of the past 10 years.
The opening ranks fifth among the strongest Spanish film launches ever recorded, well ahead of the €2.85 million earned by Ocho apellidos vascos, which had held the next place outside the top four. El Plural, La Vanguardia and Europa Press use slightly different methods for historical rankings. All three, but, place La bola negra among the decade's biggest Spanish openings. The film opened simultaneously in 414 cinemas or screening venues across Spain, one of the widest releases for a Spanish production in 2026, La Vanguardia reported.
La bola negra remains below Torrente, presidente, which opened with €6.9 million. Lo imposible ranks above it in the list cited by the report. So do Torrente 4: Lethal Crisis and Torrente 3: El protector.
The daily figures added to the surprise. La bola negra took €1.31 million on Friday 25 September, its release day. Saturday brought €1.64 million, a 25% rise, and Sunday reached €1.72 million, up another 5% from Saturday. Several outlets, including La Vanguardia and Europa Press, reported the figures from Rentrak data. The film's takings rose each day instead of falling after the first screenings.
Advance demand was already strong before the premiere: El Confidencial and La Vanguardia reported that sales for the first Friday screenings were about 40% higher than those for La Odisea at a comparable stage. La bola negra went on to record its best daily result on Sunday, finishing with a €4.67 million launch. The wider Spanish market collected about €10.4 million across the same weekend, with the film driving much of that total, an unusual result for a local release.
MeriStation also gave the film a strong assessment. Its review describes a story set in a regional environment but built around wider themes, including love and repression, as well as freedom and the wounds of memory. The historical setting provides the frame for the story without limiting its reach.
Attention had built before the premiere. La bola negra comes from Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi, known as Los Javis, and strong advance ticket sales raised its profile before release. After the premiere, it received the Audience Award at the San Sebastián Festival.
The ranking is the clearest measure of its performance. La bola negra did not pass Torrente, presidente, but it moved ahead of La Odisea and opened a wide gap over Ocho apellidos vascos, placing it among Spain's strongest theatrical launches in recent years.
The film is now showing in cinemas and will later arrive on Movistar Plus+. Its opening places Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi among the creators of Spain's top five Spanish film debuts. Daily demand continued to rise.
