Box Office: 'Thor' defeats 'Bridesmaids'

Paramount's sci-fi action blockbuster "Thor" easily defeated its new competition at the North American box office this weekend to stay at the top of the chart, earning a solid $34.5 million in ticket sales from 3,963 sites. "Thor" lifted its domestic gross to a strong $119.2 million.

At No. 2, "Bridesmaids" picked up $24.4 million via an average of $8,365 per theater at 2,918 locations. That's a pretty darn solid result for the Judd Apatow-produced comedy starring Kristen Wiig and Rose Byrne. In the film, Wiig plays a maid of honor who had serious trouble handling a bunch of crasy bridesmaids.

The only other wide release this weekend was "Priest," which failed to impress. Showing in both 2D and 3D, the action flick starring Paul Bettany only made it to No. 4, generating a weak $14.5 million from screenings at 2,864 sites. There's no way "Priest" can recover and perform better as we move forward.

Meanwhile, "Fast Five" took over the third spot this weekend, picking up $19.5 million for a domestic total gross of $168.7 million. The sequel starring Vin Diesel and Paul Walker added a few theaters and scored an average of $5,150 per location at 3,793 sites. Not a bad result for a fifth installment.

At No. 5, "Rio" pulled in $8 million, lifting its cume to $124.9 million. "Jumping the Broom" dropped to sixth place, bringing in $7.3 million for a total haul of $25.9 million. "Something Borrowed" followed at No. 7 with a weekend gross of $7 million and a rather lame cumulative gross of $25.6 million.

Also, "Water for Elephants" took a dive to No. 8 this weekend, making $4.1 million and reaching a domestic total of $48.4 million. "Tyler Perry's Madea's Big Happy Family" closed the deal in ninth place with $2.2 million for a total gross of $50.2 million.

Finally, "Soul Surfer" slipped to No. 10 with earnings of $1.8 million and a cume of $39.2 million. Say bye bye to "Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil" and "Prom." They leave the top 10 with $8.4 million and $8.9 million respectively.

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