By Franck Tabouring

Weekend of May 16 - 18

The reign of “Iron Man” is over.

“The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian” stormed to the top of the North American box office this weekend with $56.5 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Walt Disney’s anticipated action adventure based on C.S. Lewis’ fantasy novel fell short of the $65.5 million opening weekend of 2005’s “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.” Directed by Andrew Adamson, the film follows the Pevensie siblings on their quest to bring down a ruthless king who plans to eradicate the Narnians.

Last week’s box office champ “Iron Man” slipped to No. 2 with $31.2 million, reaching a domestic total of $222 million after only three weeks in release. Paramount’s comic book adaptation directed by Jon Favreau stars Robert Downey Jr. as weapons manufacturer Tony Stark, who turns into a superhero by building an armor-plated suit.

Following at No. 3 with $13.8 million was romantic comedy “What Happens In Vegas,” which lifted its cumulative gross to $40.3 million after an impressive two-week run. Released by 20th Century Fox and directed by Tom Vaughan, the film stars Ashton Kutcher and Cameron Diaz as two strangers who are forced to love together for six months after accidentally getting marries in Las Vegas.

Meanwhile, “Speed Racer” ranked in fourth this weekend, earning $7.6 million and brining its total haul to only $24.3 million after two weeks in release. The Wachowskis-directed box office flop stars Emile Hirsch as Speed, an ambitious racer who vows to bring down the ruthless moguls who manipulate races and bribe drivers.

Universal’s comedy “Baby Mama” scored $4.5 million at No. 5, reaching a domestic total of $47.2 million. Sony’s romantic comedy “Made of Honor” followed closely in sixth place, bringing its cumulative gross to $33.7 million.  

Dropping to No. 8, New Line Cinema’s comedy “Harold and Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay” collected $1.8 million from ticket sales at 1,403 locations. After four weeks in release, the film grossed $33.9 million, which is almost double the final domestic gross of its predecessor “Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle.”

Two films rounded out the top 10: Lionsgate’s action adventure “The Forbidden Kingdom” in ninth place with a weekend gross of $1 million, and Todd McCarthy’s drama “The Visitor” with $687,000 at No. 10.

Source: Box Office Mojo (www.boxofficemojo.com)