Box Office: 'Witch Mountain' wins weekend race

Weekend of March 13 - 15, 2009

"Race to Witch Mountain" defeated its competition at the North American box office this weekend with $24.4 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Directed by Andy Fickman, Walt Disney's latest family adventure stars Dwayne Johnson as a Las Vegas taxi driver helping two alien kids return to their spaceship. The film is based on the book by Alexander Key.

Last week's winner "Watchmen" dropped to No. 2, earning $17.8 million for a domestic total of $85.7 million. Based on the celebrated graphic novel by Alan Moore, the film tells the story of a group of superheroes investigating one of their colleagues' murder.

Debuting in third place this weekend with $14.1 million was "The Last House on the Left," a remake of Wes Craven's 1972 horror flick of the same title. The plot follows two parents seeking revenge against a group of sociopaths who raped their daughter.

Meanwhile, Pierre Morel's action thriller "Taken" picked up another $6.5 million at No. 4, reaching a cumulative gross of $126.7 million after a strong seven-week run. Liam Neeson stars as a determined father trying to track down his kidnapped daughter.

At No. 5, Tyler Perry's "Madea Goes to Jail" earned $5.1 million, bringing its total haul to $83.1 million. Following closely in sixth place was Danny Boyle's "Slumdog Millionaire," which brought its total gross to $132.6 million after this weekend's earnings of $5 million.

Kevin James' comedy "Paul Blart: Mall Cop" was still doing its rounds at the bottom of the top 10, taking home $3.1 million for a cumulative gross of $137.7 million. Ken Kwapis' "He's Just Not That Into You" lifted its domestic total to $89 million in eighth place.

Rounding out the top 10 were Henry Selick's 3D stop-motion adventure "Coraline," which pulled $2.7 million at No. 9 and reached a total of $69.2 million, and new entry "Miss March," which finished tenth with a weekend gross of only $2.4 million.

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