Box Office: 'Despicable Me' steals top spot

Universal's 3D-animated family adventure "Despicable Me" easily defeated its competition at the North American box office with $60.1 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

The film featuring the voice of Steve Carell locked in a huge average of $17,295 per theater at 3,476 locations.

"Predators," the weekend's second wide release, finished third with $25.3 million. The Robert Rodriguez-produced sci-fi horror flick scored an anverage of $9,479 per theater at 2,669 locations.

Still doing well was "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse," which collected $33.4 million at No. 2. Directed by David Slade, the third installment in the popular series lifted its domestic total to $237 million.

Meanwhile, Pixar's superb hit movie "Toy Story 3" dropped to No. 4, taking home $22 million. After four weeks in release, the 3D sequel has brought its cumulative gross to a strong $340.2 million.

Believe it or not, but even M. Night Shyamalan's "The Last Airbender" picked up another $17.1 million this weekend, reaching a total haul of $100.2 million. The sci-fi adventure finished fifth on the chart.

Adam Sandler's buddy comedy "Grown Ups" bagged $16.4 million, enough for sixth place. The disappointing comedy brought its cume to $111.3 million, making it a ver profitable flick for the folks at Sony.

Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz aren't that lucky, because their new action comedy "Knight and Day" failed to impress at the box office. The movie took $7.8 million for a total gross of $61.9 million.

At No. 8, "The Karate Kid" fought for a weekend take of $5.7 million, which helped the remake bring its total gross to $164.6 million. "The A-Team" followed with $1.8 million at No. 9 ($73.9 million total).

Finally, "Cyrus" moved up to No. 10 after expanding to 200 theaters. The comedy generated $1.3 million for a total haul of $3.5 million. Next week, "Inception" and "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" will battle for first place!

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