Luc Besson's Lucy breaks French film foreign box office record

Luc Besson's Lucy,  starring Scarlett Johansson and Morgan Freeman, has broken foreign box office records for a French film shown abroad, having been seen by 52.1 million people around the world.

With over 50 million tickets sold, Lucy has notched up the best score for a French film in the 20 years since UniFrance, the body that promotes French cinema abroad, started compiling the figures.

The previous record was held  by Taken 2,  a thriller directed by Olivier Magaton, which also had British and American stars and was produced by Besson's Besson EuropaCorp.

If French audiences are added, Lucy sold 57.3 million tickets, said UniFrance.

Just released in China, Lucy has attracted six million people in 10 days.

In the United States more than 15 million people have already seen it.

Lucy hit the screens in July and tells the story of a young woman, played by Johansson, who develops enhanced physical and mental capabilities, such as telepathy, telekinesis, mental time travel and can choose not to feel pain or other discomforts.