Erica Rivinoja (L), Jonathan M. Goldstein (C) and John Francis Daley in Los Angeles Animated sequel \"Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs 2\" shone at the North American box office this weekend, industry estimates showed Sunday. The follow-up to the 2009 movie based on the eponymous children\'s book about a food-making machine that spins out of control and bombards a town with meatballs took an estimated $35 million in its opening weekend.
The Sony Pictures Animation film knocked crime thriller \"Prisoners\" into second place, according to industry tracker Exhibitor Relations.
The film, starring Hugh Jackman as a desperate parent in search of his child and Jake Gyllenhaal as the detective in charge of the investigation, pulled in $11.3 million in its second weekend, taking its total to $39 million.
In third place was Formula One motorsport drama \"Rush,\" Ron Howard\'s acclaimed account of the famous duel for the 1976 world championship between James Hunt and Niki Lauda, earning $10.3 million in its opening weekend.
Fourth spot was occupied by \"Baggage Claim,\" a romantic comedy about a lovelorn flight attendant who traverses America looking for Mr Right. The film debuted with $9.3 million.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt\'s raunchy comedy-drama \"Don Jon,\" written and directed by \"The Dark Knight Rises\" actor, took fifth with $9 million in receipts. The film sees Gordon-Levitt play a porn addict who seeks to change his ways in order to win the woman of his dreams played by Scarlett Johansson.
Horror sequel \"Insidious: Chapter 2\" slid to sixth place, taking $6.7 million. The film, starring Rose Byrne and Patrick Wilson as a haunted husband and wife, is a follow-up to the successful 2010 horror flick \"Insidious.\"
In seventh spot was \"The Family,\" starring Michelle Pfeiffer and Robert De Niro as members of a mafia clan in witness protection living under the radar in France, earned $3.7 million.
Comedy-drama \"Instructions Not Included,\" Eugenio Derbez\'s movie about a Mexican playboy who is suddenly presented with a child from a previous liaison and forced to become a father, came in eighth place, taking in $3.4 million.
Adult comedy \"We\'re The Millers,\" about a bogus family attempting to smuggle drugs into the United States from Mexico, was in ninth place with $2.9 million.
Meanwhile, \"Lee Daniels\' The Butler,\" took in $2.4 million to round out the top 10. The Oscar-tipped drama, about the civil rights era as seen through the eyes of a black White House servant played by Forest Whitaker, has earned $110.3 million since its release.
Source: AFP