Box office climb
La bola negra, directed by Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi, had taken 23,525,643 euros by Sunday 11 October 2026, according to Rentrak data. La Razón reports that this covers the film's first 17 days in cinemas and that, over the same period, it took about three million euros more than Torrente presidente, based on comparative figures. Rentrak compiles the box office statistics that the Ministry of Culture publishes through the Instituto de la Cinematografía y de las Artes Audiovisuales, and the ministry says so on its website.
El Confidencial describes the total as provisional and says it was reached during the film's third weekend, helped by a holiday eve. If it keeps its current pace, the outlet says it could approach the mark set by Torrente presidente, Santiago Segura's 2026 hit.
Place in Spain's all-time ranking
El Confidencial reports that the film has reached eighth place among Spanish films by takings, passing Ágora (2009), Torrente 2: misión en Marbella (2001) and La gran aventura de Mortadelo y Filemón (2003). Films just above it include El orfanato (2007), Un monstruo viene a verme (2016) and Los otros (2001), and the outlet says the film is within reach of them. At the top, Ocho apellidos vascos (2014) leads with 56.1 million euros, followed by Lo imposible (2012) with 44.2 million and Ocho apellidos catalanes (2015) with 36.1 million. By admissions, the film has sold 3.7 million tickets, still short of the tenth-place film on that list, No desearás al vecino del quinto, with 4.3 million.
A film built on Lorca and three eras
The film follows three gay men across a century. In 1937, Sebastián, a conscript in Franco's army, guards a prisoner he is in love with. In 1932, Carlos is refused membership of an exclusive casino club over rumours about his sexuality. In 2017, Alberto, a historian and researcher, comes into an unexpected inheritance from his estranged grandfather. Guitarricadelafuente plays Sebastián and Miguel Bernardeau plays Rafael Rodríguez Rapún, who was secretary of La Barraca and had a relationship with Federico García Lorca. Rodríguez Rapún died in Cantabria on 18 August 1937 after being wounded on the northern front. The project draws on Lorca's unfinished play, and on La piedra oscura by Alberto Conejero, who also takes part in the screenplay.
Festival run and awards race
The film premiered at Cannes in May 2026, where it won best director for its two directors, a prize BBC says was shared with Pawel Pawlikowski. The premiere set off a bidding war among distributors, and Netflix is releasing the film in North America. Odds makers rank it second favourite for best picture, behind The Odyssey. BBC also reports that it won the People's Choice Award at the Toronto Film Festival in autumn 2026, which it notes has often come before a best picture nomination. The Hollywood Reporter praised the film as a sweeping, heartsick and often funny journey of recollection and fantasy.
Filming in Cantabria
Valdáliga, a municipality in Cantabria, was one of the film's locations. Crews also shot at El Cabreru, where a Civil War firing squad was staged, and at Oyambre, which hosted a bombardment scene and rest moments for Francoist troops. The settings were chosen to contrast the violence of the conflict with the calm behind the front, with the Cantabrian landscape as backdrop.