Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (French: Valérian et la Cité des mille planètes) is a 2017 space opera film[10] written and directed by Luc Besson, and produced by his wife, Virginie Besson-Silla.

It is based on the French science fiction comics series Valérian and Laureline, written by Pierre Christin, illustrated by Jean-Claude Mézières, and published by Dargaud.

It stars Dane DeHaan and Cara Delevingne as Valerian and Laureline, respectively, with Clive Owen, Rihanna, Ethan Hawke, Herbie Hancock, Kris Wu and Rutger Hauer in supporting roles.

[11] Two operatives of the United Human Federation are on a mission to Alpha, a city inhabited by thousands of species from different planets.

Their latest mission is to uncover a destructive force beneath the sprawling city, realizing it threatens not just Alpha, but the entire universe.

It grossed $226 million worldwide, but due to its high production and advertising costs, was considered a box-office bomb following its release in the United States.

Valerian has a dream of the planet Mül, where a low-tech humanoid race fishes for pearls containing energy, which is converted by a small animal for use.

Valerian and Laureline are on a mission to retrieve the last Mül converter animal, which is in the hands of black market dealer Igon Siruss.

In a marketplace on planet Kirian in an alternate dimension, Valerian disrupts a meeting between Igon and two hooded figures similar to the humanoids from his dream.

Onboard Alpha, commander Arün Filitt informs them that an unknown force increasingly irradiates the station's center, and troops sent into the area have not returned.

Pearl Emperor Haban Limaï explains that his people lived peacefully on Mül until a battle between the Federation and a hostile alien race occurred in their world.

Filitt admits his role in the genocide but argues it was necessary to end the war and cover it up to prevent humans from losing credibility and influence in Alpha.

Valerian and Laureline are left adrift aboard an Apollo Command/Service Module, where she answers his marriage proposal with a "maybe" as they await rescue.

Although Luc Besson loved the Valerian comics while growing up, he did not seriously consider adapting them into a movie until he was working on The Fifth Element.

[30] The humanoid race the Pearls were completely synthetic creations by Weta Digital, which generated the characters from performances by actors with motion-capture equipment for their faces and bodies.

[32] Industrial Light and Magic, Weta Digital and Rodeo FX provided the effects for the film with Scott Stokdyk as the main supervisor.

A special exclusive preview of Valerian was shown prior to the Fathom Events 4K restoration showing of The Fifth Element on 14 May and 17 May.

The site's critical consensus reads, "Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets uses sheer kinetic energy and visual thrills to overcome narrative obstacles and offer a viewing experience whose surreal pleasures often outweigh its flaws.

"[58] Todd McCarthy of The Hollywood Reporter gave a negative review, saying: "The Razzies don't need to wait until the end of the year to anoint a winner for 2017 ... Hollywood studio chiefs can breathe easy that, this time, at least, they'll escape blame for making a giant summer franchise picture that nobody wants to see, since this one's a French import.

"[59] A. O. Scott of The New York Times was also less than happy with the film, writing the effort "feels as if it were made up on the spot, by someone so delighted by the gaudy genre packaging at his disposal that he lost track of what was supposed to be inside.

"[61] At the 44th Saturn Awards, Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets was nominated for the Saturn Awards for Best Science Fiction Film, Best Production Design (Hugues Tissandier), and Best Costume Design (Olivier Bériot); all respectively lost to Blade Runner 2049 (2017), Black Panther (2018, Hannah Beachler), and Beauty and the Beast (2017, Jacqueline Durran).

Though the film was a box office bomb, director Luc Besson claimed in September 2017 that a sequel was still possible due to positive fan reaction.