"Pain & Gain," a dark action comedy starring Mark Wahlberg, muscled to the top of weekend box office charts with an estimated $20 million in U.S. and Canadian tickets sales.

Mark Fellman / Paramount via AP

Dwayne Johnson as Paul Doyle, left, Mark Wahlberg as Daniel Lugo, center, and Anthony Mackie as Adrian Doorbal in the film, "Pain and Gain."

The movie about bodybuilders on a crime spree knocked Tom Cruise's sci-fi thriller "Oblivion" into second place. The post-apocalyptic drama pulled in $17.4 million, according to studio estimates released on Sunday.

Baseball drama "42" took the No. 3 slot with sales of $10.7 million from Friday through Sunday. The movie tells the story of Jackie Robinson, Major League Baseball's first black player.

Paramount, a unit of Viacom Inc, released "Pain & Gain." Universal Pictures, a unit of Comcast Corp distributed "Oblivion" and Time Warner Inc's Warner Bros released "42."

Tom Cruise's sci-fi pic "Oblivion" opened to $38.2 million at the domestic box office to come in No. 1 after a better-than-expected performance and despite a B- CinemaScore. Overseas, the Universal pic continued to please, grossing $33.7 million in its second weekend for an international cume of $112 million and worldwide total of $150.2 million.

The movie marks the actor's best North American opening outside of the "Mission: Impossible" franchise, not accounting for inflation.

Directed by Joseph Kosinski ("Tron: Legacy"), "Oblivion" co-stars Morgan Freeman, Olga Kurylenko, Andrea Riseborough, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau and Melissa Leo. Peter Chernin and Dylan Clark produced. The pic cost Universal and Elliot Inc. at least $120 million to produce.

Adult male moviegoers fueled "Oblivion," making up 57 percent of the audience.

Cruise's track record domestically has been mixed. "Jack Reacher" debuted to $15.2 million in December on its way to earning a so-so $80 million in North America. Conversely, "Mission: Impossible -- Ghost Protocol," opening to $29.6 million in December 2011, turned into a box-office monster, grossing nearly $700 million worldwide.

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Sci-fi is a familiar genre for Cruise, who starred in "War of the Worlds" and "Minority Report," both directed by Steven Spielberg.

Set in 2077, 60 years after Earth has been destroyed by aliens, "Oblivion" follows one of the last humans stationed on the planet as he uncovers a troubling secret.

Universal decided to get a jump on the beginning of the crowded summer box office by opening "Oblivion" now. The studio has gone aggressively after males by advertising during major sporting events including the NCAA's March Madness.

Speaking of sports, Legendary and Warner Bros.' Jackie Robinson biopic "42" continued to score strong numbers in its second weekend, declining a slim 34 percent to come in No. 2 with $18 million. The baseball drama's 10-day domestic total is $54.1 million.

Paramount's "G.I. Joe: Retaliation" jumped the $300 million mark in its fourth weekend, thanks to stellar $33 million opening in China. The sequel has grossed $111.2 million domestically and $211.7 million internationally for a worldwide cume of $322.9 million. In China, the pic outpaced the first film by a four-to-one margin.

Expanding nationwide over the weekend, Derek Cianfrance's indie drama "The Place Beyond the Pines," starring Bradley Cooper and Ryan Gosling, placed No. 6 in North America. The film, from Focus Features and Sidney Kimmel, took in $4.7 million for a total $11.4 million.

PHOTOS: Tom Cruise, Morgan Freeman at "Oblivion" premiere

Below are the top 10 estimates for the April 12-14 weekend at the domestic box office.

Title, weeks in release/theater count, studio, three-day weekend total, cume.

1. "Oblivion," 1/3,783, Universal, $38.2 million
2. "42," 2/3,250, Warners/Legendary, $18 million, $54.1 million
3. "The Croods," 5/3,435, Fox/DreamWorks Animation, $9.5, $154.9 million
4. "Scary Movie 5," 2/3,402, The Weinstein Co., $6.3 million, $22.9 million
5. "G.I. Joe: Retaliation," 4/3,175, Paramount, $5.8 million, $111.2 million
6. "The Place Beyond the Pines," 4/1,542, Focus/Sidney Kimmel, $4.7 million, $11.4 million
7. "Evil Dead," 3/2,823, Sony/TriStar/FilmDistrict, $4.1 million, $48.5 million
8. "Olympus Has Fallen," 5/2,638, FilmDistrict, $4.5 million, $88.1 million
9. "Jurassic Park," 3/2,330, Universal, $4 million, $38.5 million
10. "Oz The Great and Powerful," 7/2,504, Disney, $3 million, $223.8 million

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Baseball drama "42," the story of Jackie Robinson becoming the first black player in the major leagues more than 60 years ago, took home a win at the movie box office after scoring $27.3 million from weekend ticket sales in the United States and Canada. 

The film about the Hall of Fame player topped industry forecasts for an opening of about $20 million. It defeated new horror spoof "Scary Movie 5," the second-place finisher with $15.2 million from Friday through Sunday, according to studio estimates.

Animated Stone Age adventure film "The Croods" took the No. 3 slot. The Dreamworks Animation production rung up sales of $13.2 million in its fourth week for a total of $142.5 million in the U.S. and Canada.

In international markets, Tom Cruise sci-fi thriller "Oblivion" debuted with $61.1 million in 52 countries, distributor Universal Studios said. The film opens in the United States and Canada on Friday.

"42" stars TV actor Chadwick Boseman, seen on shows such as "Fringe" and "Justified," as the legendary Robinson. The title refers to Robinson's jersey number with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Harrison Ford plays Branch Rickey, the Dodgers general manager who paved the way for Robinson to enter Major League Baseball as its first black player in 1947.

Audiences thought the movie was a home run, awarding a rare A+ rating in polling by survey firm CinemaScore. Critics also gave "42" high marks, with 75 percent recommending the movie among reviews on the Rotten Tomatoes website.

"It was big in small towns, large towns, urban markets and suburban markets," said Dan Fellman, president of theatrical distribution for Warner Bros., the Time Warner Inc unit that distributed the film. Legendary Pictures produced the film for $40 million.

Box office analyst for Hollywood.com Paul Dergarabedian noted that the film's 25 percent uptick on Saturday indicated strong word of mouth.

"Scary Movie 5" revived a franchise that was dormant for seven years after the first four films grossed a combined $818 million worldwide.

The new installment, produced for less than $20 million, stars Ashley Tisdale and features cameos by troubled actress Lindsay Lohan and Hollywood bad boy Charlie Sheen. The film pokes fun at pop culture phenomena like racy novel "Fifty Shades of Grey" and recent Jessica Chastain horror flick "Mama."

Ahead of the weekend, box office pundits predicted an opening of up to $17 million for "Scary Movie 5."

"We would have liked to have seen a bit higher of a number," said Erik Lomis, distribution president for The Weinstein Co, the privately held company that released the movie.

The fifth "Scary Movie" installment opened lower than any of the previous ones.

In fourth place was action movie sequel "G.I. Joe: Retaliation," which earned $10.8 million during its third week in theaters.

Last week's box office winner "Evil Dead" fell to fifth place this week, taking in $9.5. The horror film is a remake of a 1981 classic of the genre.

"The Croods" was produced by Dreamworks Animation and distributed by 20th Century Fox, a unit of News Corp. Viacom Inc's Paramount Pictures released "G.I. Joe: Retaliation." "Evil Dead" was distributed by Sony Corp's movie studio. Comcast Corp's Universal Studios released "Oblivion." Viacom Inc's Paramount Pictures released "G.I. Joe: Retaliation." "Evil Dead" was distributed by Sony Corp's movie studio. Comcast Corp's Universal Studios released "Oblivion."

The modestly budgeted remake of Sam Raimi's 1981 cult horror pic "Evil Dead" earned a better-than-expected $26 million in its domestic bow for a No. 1 finish. Overseas, the pic took in $4.5 million from its first 21 markets for a worldwide debut of $30.5 million.

"Evil Dead," from Sony/TriStar, FilmDistrict and Raimi's Ghost House Pictures, earned a C+ CinemaScore in North America. Usually that would be problematic but horror films often receive a middling grade. The remake, appealing heavily to males (56 percent), cost $17 million to produce.

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It is the fourth "Evil Dead" title and the first not to be directed by Raimi, who personally tapped Fede Alvarez to direct the reboot, which follows five friends who awaken a demonic presence while visiting a cabin in rural Massachusetts. The film's strong performance marks another victory for Sony/TriStar after "The Call."

Nostalgia invaded the box office all the way around.

Universal's 3D rerelease of Steven Spielberg's "Jurassic Park" also turned in a pleasing performance, coming in No. 4 domestically with $18.2 million, one of the top openings for a 3D redo (as a way of comparison, "Titanic 3D" opened to $17.3 million domestically). Overseas, "Jurassic Park" grossed $3 million from seven territories for a total opening of $21.2 million.

The 3D rerelease generated record-breaking returns for IMAX, which delivered $6 million in ticket sales -- or 32 percent of the total gross, the biggest share ever for the large-format circuit.

Universal opens the 3D rerelease of "Jurassic Park" 20 years after the original dinosaur movie debuted and is using the pic to prime audiences for "Jurassic Park IV," which rolls out in June 2014 (Spielberg is producing but not directing). Hollywood has had a mixed track record with 3D rereleases and will be watching closely to see how "Jurassic Park" performs over the course of its short run (the Blu-Ray/DVD comes out in two weeks).

"The Croods" and "G.I. Joe: Retaliation" claimed the No. 2 and No. 3 spots on the North American box office chart, although the precise order won't be determined until Monday morning, since both films are estimating a $21.1 million weekend.

"Croods," from DreamWorks Animation and Fox, jumped the $300 million mark globally over the weekend, becoming only the second title of 2013 to do so after "Oz the Great and Powerful." "Croods" grossed $34.1 million internationally from 62 markets for a foreign total of $206.8 million. The 3D toon has now earned $125.8 domestically for a global cume of $332.6 million.

"G.I. Joe" raced past the $200 million mark in its second weekend of play at the global box office. The action pic, from Paramount, MGM and Skydance, boasts a domestic total of $86.7 million, while it earned $40.2 million internationally from 60 countries for a foreign total of $145.2 million and global haul of $231.9 million.

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Internationally, "G.I. Joe" is already on the verge of eclipsing the $150 million earned by "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra" in its entire run.

At the specialty box office, Focus Features' "A Place Beyond the Pines" rose up the domestic chart to No. 14 as it expanded into a total of 30 theaters in its second weekend, grossing $695,041 for a total $886,459 and location average of $23,168.

Among openers, Danny Boyle's British thriller "Trance" grossed a solid $136,103 from four theaters in New York and Los Angeles for a location average of $34,206.

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Action movie "G.I. Joe: Retaliation" won the weekend box office battle in the United States and Canada, fighting off competition from cartoon cavemen, a Tyler Perry drama, and an alien-possessed heroine trying to save the human race.

Jaimie Trueblood / Paramount Pictures

Channing Tatum, left, and Dwayne Johnson in a scene from "G.I. Joe: Retaliation."

"G.I. Joe," a sequel starring Channing Tatum, Dwayne Johnson and Bruce Willis, secured $41.2 million in domestic ticket sales from Friday through Sunday, according to studio estimates.

Last week's winner, animated prehistoric adventure "The Croods," slipped to second place with $26.5 million in North America (the United States and Canada). "Tyler Perry's Temptation" landed in the No. 3 slot with $22.3 million.

"G.I. Joe" opened Wednesday evening to get a jump on the Easter holiday weekend. The cumulative box office after Sunday is estimated at $51.7 million. In international markets, the movie racked up $80.3 million, for a global haul of $132 million.

"The result is as spectacular as the look of the movie," said Don Harris, president of domestic theatrical distribution at Paramount Pictures.

"We couldn't be happier with the result in terms of both the domestic and international box office and the response from movie goers."

Inspired by a Hasbro toy, "G.I. Joe" tells the story of elite soldiers fighting the enemy organization called Cobra as well as threats from within the federal government. The sequel to 2009's "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra" was slated to open last summer, but the release was delayed to convert the film to 3D.

Viacom Inc's Paramount Pictures, MGM and Skydance Productions produced the sequel for about $130 million. Ahead of the weekend, forecasters predicted a domestic tally around $38 million for "G.I. Joe."

Domestic ticket sales for "The Croods," a Dreamworks Animation comedy about a family of cave dwellers, dropped 39 percent from its debut a week ago.

"Temptation," a departure from Perry's hit comedies, focuses on a married woman drawn to a handsome billionaire. The movie stars Jurnee Smollett-Bell, Lance Gross and Vanessa Williams. Reality TV star Kim Kardashian plays a small role and helped promote the film through TV appearances and social media.

Another new release, sci-fi romantic thriller "The Host," finished in sixth place with $11 million. The movie is based on a novel by Stephenie Meyer, author of the "Twilight" vampire series that became a blockbuster movie franchise.

"Host" features a love triangle centered around a young woman whose body is taken over by an alien with good intentions. The two live in the same body, first as enemies before they become friends who team up to save the human race. Irish actress Saoirse Ronan plays the lead character.

Distributor Open Road Films acquired domestic rights for "The Host" for $2 million.

In fourth place, thriller "Olympus Has Fallen" earned $14 million during its second weekend. The movie stars Gerard Butler and Morgan Freeman in the tale of a White House under attack. Disney's "Oz the Great and Powerful" came in fifth with $11.6 million.

"G.I. Joe" was released by Paramount Pictures, a unit of Viacom Inc. "The Croods" was produced by Dreamworks Animation and released by News Corp unit 20th Century Fox. "The Host" was distributed by Open Road Films, a joint venture between theater owners Regal Entertainment Group and AMC Entertainment Inc. Lions Gate Entertainment released "Temptation." "Olympus Has Fallen" was distributed by privately held FilmDistrict.

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A bumbling prehistoric family and a terrorist takeover of the White House galvanized weekend moviegoers as new entries "The Croods" and "Olympus Has Fallen" took the top two spots at the North American box office.

DreamWorks Animation

"The Croods."

"Croods" opened to a solid $44.7 million from 4,406 theaters after receiving a pleasing A CinemaScore. That's welcome news for Jeffrey Katzenberg's DreamWorks Animation, whose previous film "Rise of the Guardians" was a box-office dud.

Overseas, "Croods" opened to $63.3 million from 47 markets for a total global bow of $108 million. The international figure includes roughly $17 million in previews from last weekend.

Following the travails of a prehistoric family, "Croods" is the first DWA title to be distributed by Fox via the studio's new distribution and marketing deal with Katzenberg's company. The voice cast is led by Ryan Reynolds, Emma Stone and Nicolas Cage.

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The animated 3-D tentpole, opening just ahead of DWA's March 2010 event pic "How to Train Your Dragon" ($43.7 million), is benefiting from a dearth of family product in the marketplace, evidenced by a sizeable 63 percent family bump from Friday to Saturday.

Fox and DWA are anticipating strong midweek business thanks to spring break and millions of kids being out of school. "Croods" cost a reported $135 million to make.

"This is a terrific opening," said Fox president of domestic distribution Chris Aronson. "And with the spring holiday ahead of us, audiences will continue to seek this movie out. The next family movie (Fox's "Epic") isn't Memorial Day."

Antoine Fuqua's "Olympus Has Fallen" overperformed in its debut, grossing $30.5 million from 3,098 theaters to become one of the few R-rated action pics of the year to work so far. The movie also marks a comeback for Gerard Butler, who has suffered a string of box office bombs.

"Olympus Has Fallen," receiving an A- CinemaScore and fueled by older moviegoers, also marks the biggest opening to date for distributor FilmDistrict. Millennium Films fully financed and produced the $70 million pic, which features Butler as a disgraced presidential guard who is called back into action when North Korean terrorists take over the White House. Roland Emmerich's "White House Down," opening in June, is similarly themed.

"Olympus Has Fallen" also stars Morgan Freeman, Aaron Eckhart, Melissa Leo and Ashley Judd.

New Paul Weitz specialty comedy "Admission," starring Tina Fey and Paul Rudd, opened on the soft side, grossing $6.4 million to place No. 5. Focus Features had hoped for slightly more, but believes "Admission" will benefit from word of mouth among older females. However, moviegoers only gave the film a B- CinemaScore, matching mixed reviews.

Focus' financial exposure is limited considering "Admission,"  playing in more than 2,000 theaters, cost a modest $13 million to produce. The comedy tells the story of a straitlaced Princeton University admissions officer (Fey) whose life takes an unexpected turn when she makes a recruiting trip to an alternative high school run by a former classmate (Rudd).

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Harmony Korine's outrageous indie comedy "Spring Breakers," which expanded nationwide Friday, isn't that far behind "Admission" despite only playing in only about 1,100 theaters. The R-rated pic grossed $5 million, a solid number for upstart distributor A25 Films.

"Spring Breakers," starring James Franco, Selena Gomez, Vanessa Hudgens and Ashley Benson, scored the best limited release of the year last weekend when opening in three theaters in New York and Los Angeles. The pic's cume is $5.4 million.

Below are the top 10 estimates for the March 22-24 weekend at the domestic box office. Title, weeks in release/theater count, studio, three-day weekend total. 

1. "The Croods," 1/4,046, Fox/DreamWorks Animation, $44.7 million
2. "Olympus Has Fallen," 1/3,098, FilmDistrict, $30.5 million
3. "Oz the Great and Powerful," 3/3,805, Disney, $22 million, $177.6 million
4. "The Call," 2/2,507, Sony/TriStar, $8.7 million, $30.9 million
5. "Admission," 1/2,160, Focus Features, $6.4 million
6. "Spring Breakers," 2/1,104, A24 Films, $5 million, $5.4 million
7. "The Incredible Burt Wonderstone," 2/3,160, Warner Bros./New Line, $4.3 million, $17.4 million
8. "Jack the Giant Slayer," 4/2,560, Warner Bros./New Line, $3 million, $59 million
9. "Identity Thief," 7/2,166, Universal, $2.5 million, $127.7 million
10. "Snitch," 5/1,807, Lionsgate/Participant, $1.9 million, $40.3 million

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Walt Disney

James Franco stars as Oz in Walt Disney Pictures' "Oz: The Great and Powerful."

Walt Disney Co's "Oz the Great and Powerful" reigned over movie box offices in its second weekend, following up its strong debut a week earlier with $42.2 million at U.S. and Canadian theaters.

The "Wizard of Oz" prequel starring James Franco beat newcomer "The Call," a thriller about a 911 operator trying to save a kidnapped girl. The movie starring Halle Berry earned $17.1 million from Friday through Sunday, according to studio estimates.

"The Incredible Burt Wonderstone," a comedy featuring Steve Carrell and Jim Carrey as dueling Las Vegas magicians, finished the weekend in third place. It conjured up $10.3 million.

Sony Corp's movie studio released "The Call." "The Incredible Burt Wonderstone" was distributed by Warner Bros., a unit of Time Warner Inc.

Breathing life into the beleaguered box office, Sam Raimi's 3D fantasy-adventure "Oz the Great and Powerful" took in an impressive $80.3 million in its North American debut and $69.9 million overseas for a global opening of $150.2 million.

Disney and producer Joe Roth hope to launch a family friendly franchise with "Oz," which scored the top North American debut of 2013, as well as the third-best March opening of all time after last year's "The Hunger Games" ($152.5 million) and fellow Disney fantasy-adventure "Alice in Wonderland," which debuted to $116.1 million in early March 2010.

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The "Wizard of Oz" prequel tells the story of how a fast-talking Kansas circus worker (James Franco) became the Wizard of Oz. The three witches central to the story are played by Mila Kunis, Rachel Weisz and Michelle Williams.

Disney spent north of $300 million on "Oz," between the $215 million production budget and a hefty worldwide marketing campaign. It is opening in the same corridor as Tim Burton's "Alice in Wonderland," starring Johnny Depp. "Alice" received an A- CinemaScore from moviegoers, versus a B+ for "Oz."

"Oz" did solid, but not spectacular, business internationally, where the original 1939 film isn't as well known. Russia led with $15 million, followed by the U.K. ($5.7 million), Mexico ($5.1 million) and Australia ($5 million). Oz opened to $4.2 million in Germany, where it was in a close battle with holdover "Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters."

"Oz" opened in a total of 46 territories, or roughly 80 percent of the international marketplace.

In North America, "Oz" saw a hefty 35 percent as families turned out in force, making up 41 percent of the audience. Couples made up 43 percent, while teenagers made up 16 percent. The movie skewed slightly female (52 percent).

"The families absolutely came out, but we also did great business during the evening," said Disney distribution chief Dave Hollis."After six weekends of decline at the box office, 'Oz' has become a water-cooler movie and gets people back in the mood to see movies."

Roughly 53 percent of the domestic gross came from 3D theaters, a pleasing number considering the overall decline in 3D attendance. IMAX theaters contributed 10 percent of the 3D total, or $8.2 million. Overseas, IMAX grosses came in at $4 million, setting a March record.

 As expected, "Oz" made life impossible for Bryan Singer's 3D fantasy-adventure "Jack and the Giant Slayer," which fell 63 percent in its second weekend to $10 million for a domestic total of $43.8 million. The tentpole, from New Line and Legendary Pictures, came in No. 2 domestically.

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The weekend's other new wide release, romantic thriller "Dead Man Down," fell flat in its opening, coming in No. 4 with roughly $5.5 million. Marking the English-language debut of Niels Arden Oplev, "Dead Man Down" reteams the filmmaker with his "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" star Noomi Rapace.

Colin Farrell, Terrence Howard and Dominic Cooper also star in the movie, which is being distributed domestically by FilmDistrict. IM Global, Original Films and Frequency Films are partners on the film.

Below are estimates for the March 8-10 weekend at the domestic box office.

Title, weeks in release/theater count, studio, three-day weekend total, cume (*denotes Oscar best picture nominee)

1. "Oz the Great and Powerful," 1/3,912, Disney, $80.3 million

2. "Jack the Giant Slayer," 2/3,525, Warner Bros., $10 million, $43.8 million

3. "Identity Thief," 5/3,002, Universal, $6.3 million, $116.5 million

4. "Dead Man Down," 1/2,188, FilmDistrict/IM Global, $5.4 million

5. "Snitch," 3/2,340, Lionsgate/Participant, $5.1 million, $26.8 million

6. "21 and Over," 2/2,771, Relativity Media, $5.1 million, $16.8 million

7. "Safe Haven," 4/2,541, Relativity, $3.8 million, $62.9 million

8. *"Silver Linings Playbook," 17/1,727, The Weinstein Co., $3.7 million, $120.7 million

9. "Escape From Planet Earth," 4/2,549, The Weinstein Co, $3.2 million, $47.8 million

10. "The Last Exorcism: Part II," 2/2,700, CBS Films, $3.1 million, $12.1 million

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Comedy "Identity Thief" snatched the weekend box office title in the United States and Canada during its third weekend in theaters, narrowly beating new action movie "Snitch" as Hollywood focused on Sunday evening's Academy Awards ceremony.

"Identity Thief" starring Melissa McCarthy grabbed $14 million in ticket sales from Friday through Sunday, according to studio estimates compiled by Reuters. 

"Snitch" featuring Dwayne Johnson finished close behind with $13 million. The animated offering "Escape From Planet Earth" took in $11 million to finish third in its second week in theaters.

The win was the second for "Identity Thief," which led the charts when it debuted February 8 and finished in second place a week ago. The adult comedy features McCarthy as a woman who steals the identity of a hapless man played by Jason Bateman.

"Identity Thief" has collected $93.7 million at North American (U.S. and Canadian) theaters to date.

Moviegoing was typically slow for an Oscars weekend. Total sales for all films ran slightly over $1.4 billion, a 6.6 percent drop from the same weekend last year, according to box office tracker Hollywood.com.

"Snitch" stars Johnson as a father who goes undercover to clear his son to keep him out of jail after he is wrongly accused of drug dealing. Susan Sarandon and Benjamin Bratt also star.

Ahead of the weekend, forecasters saw "Snitch" pulling in $10 million to $12 million. Summit Entertainment, a unit of Lions Gate Entertainment, bought U.S. distribution rights for about $5 million.

The weekend's other new movie, low-budget horror flick "Dark Skies," collected $8.9 million to debut in sixth place. The movie stars Keri Russell as a mother working to protect her children from alien invaders.

The film cost $3.5 million to make and was produced by "Paranormal Activity" producer Jason Blum. The Weinstein Company distributed the movie.

Last weekend's leader, "A Good Day to Die Hard," dropped to fifth place. The fifth movie in the Bruce Willis action franchise took in $10 million this weekend.

"Identity Thief" was released by Universal Pictures, a unit of Comcast Corp. "Snitch" was distributed by Summit Entertainment, a unit of Lions Gate Entertainment. The Weinstein Company distributed "Escape From Planet Earth" and "Dark Skies." "A Good Day to Die Hard" was released by News Corp's 20th Century Fox studio.

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The fifth movie in the Bruce Willis "Die Hard" franchise scored the biggest box-office action over the U.S. holiday weekend, beating out love story "Safe Haven," which came in third for the Friday-through-Sunday period. 

"A Good Day to Die Hard," with Willis returning as the tenacious wise-cracking hero John McClane, pulled in $25 million at U.S. and Canadian theaters from Friday through Sunday, according to studio estimates. 

The tally was expected to approach $40 million through Monday, the Presidents Day holiday in the United States.

"Die Hard" beat "Safe Haven," an adaptation of a Nicholas Sparks novel that was aimed at luring couples during the week of Valentine's Day. The film, which stars Julianne Hough and Josh Duhamel, pulled in $21.4 million over three days.

Last weekend's box-office winner, the Melissa McCarthy comedy "Identity Thief," stayed strong and ended up taking second place with $23.4 million.

Willis prevailed with his reprisal of a role he played four previous times starting with the original "Die Hard" in 1988. Those movies grossed $1.1 billion around the world and made Willis a global action star.

In the new movie, McClane travels to Russia to help his estranged son, a CIA operative played by Jai Courtney, in a fight to prevent a nuclear-weapons heist.

Chris Aronson, president of domestic distribution at 20th Century Fox studio, said the film performed "right on par with our expectations," which was near $40 million for the five-day period through Monday.

Audiences were about 55 percent male and 45 percent female, with just over one-third under the age of 25 and two-thirds 25 and older, which Aronson said was in line with the franchise's last installment.

"It just shows the consistency of the fan base," he said.

The opening was nearly double the total of the original "Die Hard," adjusted for inflation, but down significantly from the previous three films in the franchise, according to figures from boxofficemojo.com.

News Corp's 20th Century Fox spent about $92 million to produce the latest "Die Hard" sequel. It hit theaters on Thursday, Valentine's Day, and, in addition to "Safe Haven," faced another romance movie in "Beautiful Creatures." Fox promoted "Die Hard" with commercials encouraging moviegoers to "get some action" on Valentine's Day.

"Beautiful Creatures," the supernatural love story about a teen girl with magical powers, made its debut with $7.5 million at the box office to rank sixth.

The film was another of several Hollywood films aiming to capture the "Twilight" and "Hunger Games" audiences of teen girls with adaptations of popular young adult novels.

Jeff Goldstein, Warner Bros.' executive vice president of theatrical distribution, said "Beautiful Creatures," produced by Alcon Entertainment for about $60 million, had a number of competitors on a busy weekend and the studio had hoped for a bigger turnout. "It just missed the audience," Goldstein said.

"Safe Haven" stars "Dancing with the Stars" alum Hough as a young woman who meets a widower played by Duhamel. Privately held Relativity Media produced the film for $28 million.

The studio said the film had performed in line with industry expectations of $20 million to $25 million, and would likely place second from the Thursday-to-Monday holiday period.

In fourth place, family film "Escape from Planet Earth," pulled in $16.1 million. The $40 million animated movie features the voices of Brendan Fraser and Sarah Jessica Parker in the story of an astronaut who finds trouble when he responds to a distress call from an alien planet.

Zombie romance "Warm Bodies," in its third weekend of release, took the No. 5 slot with $9 million.

"Identity Thief" was released by Universal Pictures, a unit of Comcast Corp. The privately held Weinstein Co released "Escape from Planet Earth." Lions Gate Entertainment's Summit studio released "Warm Bodies." "Beautiful Creatures" was produced by Alcon Entertainment and distributed by Warner Bros., a unit of Time Warner Inc.

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LOS ANGELES -- "Warm Bodies," a romantic comedy featuring a warm-hearted zombie, lured teenage girls to the theater, collecting $20 million in ticket sales in the U.S. and Canada to take the box office title on a weekend dominated by Super Bowl parties and football watching.

Playing in more than 3,000 theaters, the odd pairing of a pale-faced zombie with his breathing girlfriend faced little competition among new films and easily mauled last weekend's winner "Hansel and Gretel," an updated version of the classic fairy tale with witch-hunting siblings that collected $9.2 million this weekend, according to studio estimates.

The weekend's other widely released newcomer "Bullet to the Head," starring 66-year-old Sylvester Stallone as a tattooed hit-man, collected $4.5 million for sixth place.

Two weeks earlier, another aging action star, Arnold Schwarzenegger, had a feeble opening in his own shoot-em-up, "The Last Stand."

Benefiting from the buzz following Oscar nominations for each of its four stars, "Silver Linings Playbook" was third with $8.1 million as it continued to open in more theaters. The film is now showing at more than 2,600 locations, according to the movie site Hollywood.com.

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A grown-up "Hansel & Gretel" grabbed the weekend box office title, pulling in $19 million in U.S. and Canadian ticket sales with its reinvention of the classic fairy tale characters as fierce bounty hunters.

"Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters" knocked last weekend's winner, low-budget horror flick "Mama," into second place. "Mama" earned $12.8 million from Friday through Sunday, according to studio estimates, followed by "Silver Linings Playbook" with $10 million.

CIA drama "Zero Dark Thirty" came in fourth with $9.8 million.

Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton star in "Hansel & Gretel" as crossbow-wielding adult siblings who travel the world to take out evil witches. MGM and Viacom Inc's Paramount Pictures produced the action comedy for about $50 million. Paramount had predicted opening weekend sales in the high-teens or low $20 million range.

Don Harris, Paramount's president of distribution, said the film performed well despite the very cold temperatures and snow that hit the eastern United States.

"We are pleased that we were on our number on a worldwide basis. It looks like we are on or exceeding our numbers, but we did get dinged with the weather on Friday," he said in an interview.

"The impact of the weather was certainly more than I had predicted."

"Mama" features Jessica Chastain as a woman forced to take care of two orphaned nieces who have been living in the woods. The $15 million production has now earned $48.6 million at U.S. and Canadian theaters through two weekends.

Chastain also stars in "Zero Dark Thirty" in an Oscar-nominated role as a dogged CIA agent searching for al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. The best picture nominee, which has sparked debate over depictions of torture, has grossed $69.9 million since its release in late December.

"Silver Linings Playbook," another Oscar contender, stars Bradley Cooper as a former mental patient trying to rebuild his life with the help of a young widow played by Jennifer Lawrence. Total sales for "Silver Linings" reached $69.46 million.

New crime thriller "Parker" finished in fifth place, taking in $7 million at domestic theaters. The film is based on a series of novels by Donald E. Westlake and stars Jason Statham as a thief seeking revenge against a crew that double-crossed him. Jennifer Lopez plays a woman who helps with his mission.

"Movie 43," a raunchy new comedy with an ensemble of Hollywood directors and stars, settled for seventh place. The film is a series of related short films about three kids scouring the Internet to find the world's most-banned movie. Stars making appearances include Huge Jackman, Seth MacFarlane, Kate Winslet and Dennis Quaid. Privately held Relativity Media produced the film for about $6 million.

"Mama" was distributed by Universal Studios, a division of Comcast Corp. Sony Corp's movie studio released "Zero Dark Thirty." "Parker" was released by independent studio FilmDistrict. The Weinstein Co distributed "Silver Linings Playbook."

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