'Men in Black 3' repels 'The Avengers' at the box office

'Men in Black 3' repels 'The Avengers' at the box office

The federal space agents from Men In Black 3 toppled The Avengers over the Memorial Day weekend, ending the superheroes' three-week reign over the box office.

MIB3, which reunited Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones, collected $70 million over the long weekend, according to studio estimates from box office trackers Hollywood.com.

The debut met the lower end of expectations, but it was enough to thwart the comic-book adaptation, which took second place with $46.9 million over the holiday. The movie has collected $52 3.6 million since its May 4 release.

Despite analysts' expectations, MIB3's victory was no mean feat, says Gitesh Pandya of Box Office Guru.

"Rejuvenating a franchise after a decade-long absence was a challenge," he says. "As was attracting audiences when The Avengers is doing so well with action-hungry audiences."

The third installment of the comedy franchise scored respectable numbers from critics and fans. About 67% of critics gave the movie a thumbs-up, compared with 78% of audiences, according to pollsters Rotten Tomatoes. The movie scored earned a B-plus from audiences, including an A-minus from moviegoers 18 and younger, according to CinemaScore.

John Hamann of Box Office Prophets says that while MIB3 didn't set the box office o n fire, it "didn't out-and-out collapse the way Battleship did" when it debuted last week, taking second with a disappointing $25.5 million.

Hamann notes that MIB3 took in more in its first three days ($55 million) than the original did in 1997 ($51 million) and the 2002 sequel ($52 million). Of course, he says, higher ticket prices mean those films saw bigger initial attendance, if not grosses.

Battleship took third place with $13.8 million, followed by the comedy The Dictator with $11.8 million. The Johnny Depp comedy Dark Shadows was fifth with $9.4 million.

The only other major newcomer, the horror film Chernobyl Diaries, didn't shake much up at the cineplex, mustering sixth place with $9.3 million.

Among small-studio and foreign films, Wes Anderson's drama Moonrise Kingdom did a healthy $669,000 on four screens. The Intouchables, a French comedy that's done $343 million worldwide, debuted to a solid $137,400 in four theaters. Final figures are due Tuesday.

Ticket sales are slowing but remain ahead of last year, according to Hollywood.com. Revenues are up 11% over the same time last year, while attendance is up 14%.