The "X-Men" mutants overpowered the human competition at the U.S. Memorial Day holiday box office in North America, as the final film in the comic-book trilogy logged the fourth-biggest opening of all time, according to studio estimates on Monday.
"X-Men: The Last Stand" earned $120.1 million in the four days since opening on May 26, distributor 20th Century Fox said on Monday, and set new records as the biggest Memorial Day holiday opener ever and the biggest debut so far this year.
"The Da Vinci Code" previously held the honors for the best opening of the year after launching last weekend to $77 million. It slipped to No. 2 with a four-day sum of $43 million and a total of $145.5 million, but remained the top film internationally. "Over the Hedge" was No. 3 in North America with $35.3 million, also down one spot. Its two-week total rose to $84.4 million.
While the "X-Men" franchise is on fire, Tom Cruise's "Mission: Impossible" series is on the ropes. "Mission: Impossible III" has grossed $115.8 million after four weekends. At the same stage in their cycles, 1996's "Mission: Impossible" had earned about $145 million, and 2000's "Mission: Impossible 2" $177 million. For the current weekend, the new film earned $8.6 million, ranking at No. 4.
The Friday-to-Sunday haul for "X-Men: The Last Stand" was $103.1 million, revised down from the $107 million estimate released on Sunday. But the three-day sum still ranks No. 4 on the all-time list. The record for a film opening on a Friday is held by 2002's "Spider-Man" ($115 million), followed by 2005's "Star Wars: Episode III -- Revenge of the Sith ($108.4 million) and 2004's "Shrek 2" ($108 million).
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The new film, whose returning cast of mutants includes British actors Patrick Stewart as the heroic Professor X and Ian McKellen as the evil Magneto, was directed by Brett Ratner, best known for the "Rush Hour" films.
Fox, a unit of News Corp., licensed the comic book franchise from Marvel Entertainment Inc. "The Da Vinci Code" was released by Columbia Pictures, a unit of Sony Corp .. Viacom Inc.'s Paramount Pictures released both "Over the Hedge" and "Mission: Impossible III."
