'Mr Peabody & Sherman' top dog at US box office

Animated children's film "Mr Peabody & Sherman" took top spot at the North American box office this weekend, industry estimates showed Sunday. The critically acclaimed Fox movie, based on characters from the 1960s television cartoon "Rocky and Bullwinkle" follows the adventures of a super-intelligent canine who adopts a human infant. The movie, which features the voice of "Modern Family" star Ty Burrell as the heroic talking canine Mr Peabody, took $21 million on its second week of release, figures from Exhibitor Relations showed. The three-day haul was strong enough to knock bloody ancient Greece fantasy-action movie "300: Rise of an Empire" from atop the box office standings. The gory follow-up to the 2007 hit "300" added $19.1 million to its strong opening weekend. The latest film, based on a not-yet-released graphic novel by Frank Miller, sees the return of several characters from the first film, notably the fearsome Persian warrior Xerxes played by Rodrigo Santoro. In third place was "Need for Speed" the fast-paced car-chase action film inspired by the videogame of the same name. The film, which features "Breaking Bad" star Aaron Paul in his first major movie role since the award-winning television series ended last year, took $17.8 million. Fourth place was occupied by "Non-Stop," the Liam Neeson action movie set on a long-haul flight. The film added another $10.6 million to its total earnings. One place behind was "The Single Mom's Club", the latest offering from prolific actor-director Tyler Perry, about five struggling mothers who set aside their differences to bond in a support group. The film took $8.3 million on debut. Sixth place was occupied by "The Lego Movie," the hit animated film inspired by the children's toy building blocks, with $7.7 million. Religious epic "Son of God" meanwhile added $5.4 million to take seventh spot. The quirky humor of "The Grand Budapest Hotel" meanwhile forced its way into the top 10 on its second week of release. The film by Wes Anderson ("The Royal Tenenbaums", "Fantastic Mr Fox") took eighth place with $3.6 million. Rounding out the top 10 were Disney's Oscar-winning animated hit "Frozen" with $2.1 million and "Veronica Mars", the big-screen version of the 2004-2007 television series about a teenage sleuth, which earned $2 million on a limited release.