Box Office: 'Funny People' takes top spot with $23M

Weekend of July 31 – August 2, 2009: “Funny People” opens strong, “Potter” close behind

Judd Apatow’s latest comedy “Funny People” jumped to the top of the North American box office this weekend with $23.4 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

The R-rated film, which received mixed reviews, scored an average of $7,793 per theater at 3,008 locations. Starring Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen and Leslie Mann, “People” follows the adventures of a stand-up comedian who's having a near-death experience.

“Aliens in the Attic,” this weekend’s second wide release, only made it to No. 5 with a three-day gross of $7.8 million, despite a run at 3,106 locations. The film follows a family’s battle against alien intruders in their vacation home.

Failing to secure a spot inside the top 10 was new entry “The Collector,” which finished eleventh with only $3.6 million at 1,325 sites. The Marcus Dunstan-directed horror flick follows a thief who encounters a ruthless killer during a routine home invasion.

Staying put at No. 2 was David Yates’ “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince,” which earned $17.7 million for a domestic total of $255.4 million after a strong three-week run.

Following closely in third place with $17 million was Disney’s action adventure “G-Force,” which brought its total haul to $66.4 million after a little more than one week in release.

Meanwhile, Robert Luketic’s romantic comedy “The Ugly Truth” slipped to No. 4 this weekend, picking up $13 million. Starring Gerard Butler and Katherine Heigl, the film brought its cumulative gross to $54.4 million.

“Orphan” dropped to sixth place, taking home $7.2 million for a cume of $26.7 million. Following at No. 7 with a weekend gross of $5.3 million was “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs,” whose total gross now stands at $181.8 million.

Things didn’t change that much at the bottom of the top 10. “The Hangover” pulled $5 million at No. 8 for a total of $255.7 million, while “The Proposal” followed at No. 9 with weekend earnings of $4.8 million and a domestic total of $148.8 million.

Finally, Michael Bay’s “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” finished the weekend with $4.6 million and an impressive cumulative gross of $388.1 million after six weeks in release.

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