Saw IV stormed to the top of the North American box office this weekend with an estimated US$32.1 million.
Directed by Darren Lynn Bousman, the fourth installment in the popular Saw series opened at 3,183 theaters on Friday, slightly surpassing the $31.7 million opening gross of Saw II. The Lionsgate release, however, failed to beat the $33 million opening of its predecessor, Saw III.
New entry Dan in Real Life ranked in second, collecting $12.1 million from ticket sales at only 1,921 locations. Directed by Peter Hedges, this romantic comedy stars Steve Carell as a lonely advice columnist and single father who falls for his brother's girlfriend. Juliette Binoche co-stars.
Last week's winner 30 Days of Night dropped to No. 3, earning $6.7 million from 2,859 theaters. The David Slade-directed zombie shocker lifted its cumulative gross to $27.3 million after an impressive two-week run.
Walt Disney's The Game Plan slipped to No. 4 this weekend, taking home $6.3 million. Directed by Andy Fickman and starring Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson, the PG-13 comedy reached a total haul of $77.1 million after five weeks of release.
Meanwhile, Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married ranked in fifth, pulling $5.7 million from 1,897 markets, thus lifting its cumulative take to $47.3 million after three weeks in theaters.
This upcoming weekend, three major releases will compete for the No. 1 spot at the box office.
Ridley Scott returns with American Gangster, a crime drama starring Russell Crowe and Denzel Washington. Based on an article by Mark Jacobson, the film follows a detective who struggles to hunt down New York's most influential drug lord. American Gangster is set to debut at more than 3,000 theaters.
Also opening is Stephen Hickner and Simon J. Smith's animated feature Bee Movie (above), which follows the adventures of Barry B. Benson, a courageous bee who decides to sue the human race after discovering that humans are mass consumers of honey. Voices are provided by Jerry Seinfeld, Renée Zellweger, John Goodman, Matthew Broderick, Kathy Bates, Oprah Winfrey, Ray Liotta, and others. Bee Movie is distributed by DreamWorks Animation and is scheduled to land at 3,500 theaters.
Delayed several times due to reshoots and reediting, Menno Meyjes' drama Martial Child is finally ready. Starring John Cusack and sister Joan Cusack, the movie tells the story of a writer who tries to adopt a 6-year-old boy who thinks he's from Mars.
Limited releases include Marc Forster's drama The Kite Runner (right), Ted Braun's documentary Darfur Now, and Joe Strummer: The Future is Unwritten, a documentary by Julien Temple.
Source: Box Office Mojo (www.boxofficemojo.com)
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