PARIS — Luc Besson’s latest sci-fi extravaganza, “Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets,” has every hallmark of his work: action, romance, sassy women packing heat, underwater scenes, special effects and a sense of humor that finds room for Rihanna to perform a shape-shifting Moulin Rouge-style number in outer space, before helping the hero save the world.

It is also the most expensive French film ever made, with a budget of around $150 million. Huge for France, and even for Hollywood, although several films have topped that, most notably two “Pirates of the Caribbean” installments at $300 million and counting. Mr. Besson, whose big ambitions and business savvy have earned him a reputation as the most American of France’s filmmakers, claims he doesn’t find the number very interesting. “Yeah, but who cares?” he said in a recent interview at the Cité du Cinéma, a studio in northern Paris that he helped get built and where he filmed “Valerian.”

What do you mean who cares? The film seems genetically engineered to make money, with plot twists and a range of characters designed to appeal to every man, woman, child and Instagram follower on the planet. “I’m happy we paid everyone,” Mr. Besson said, speaking in English. He was sitting in a large armchair and squeezing honey into a cup of Lipton Yellow Label Tea. “All the money went to the special effects.”