Dawn of the Planet of the Apes rises to top of North American box office

Cinema still: Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes. Newcomer Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes clambered to the top at US and Canadian silver screens, edging out the Transformers epic, industry data showed Sunday. -- PHOTO: TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX
Cinema still: Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes. Newcomer Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes clambered to the top at US and Canadian silver screens, edging out the Transformers epic, industry data showed Sunday. -- PHOTO: TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX

LOS ANGELES (AFP) - Newcomer Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes clambered to the top at US and Canadian silver screens, edging out the Transformers epic, industry data showed Sunday.

The Apes saga, based on the Pierre Boulle sci-fi tale of humans and chimps clashing to survive, had a smashing debut, raking in US$73 million (S$90.6 million), according to industry monitor Exhibitor Relations.

That pushed Transformers: Age Of Extinction to second place with US$16.5 million - or US$209 million in three weeks.

The massive morphing robots epic was the first movie of the year to open with US$100 million on the domestic front.

In third place was comic romp Tammy, starring Melissa McCarthy, whose road trip with her alcoholic grandmother, played by Susan Sarandon, brought in US$12.9 million in ticket sales.

Buddy cop comedy 22 Jump Street, featuring Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum, pulled in US$6.7 million for fourth place.

Another blockbuster summer sequel, How To Train Your Dragon 2, came in fifth with US$5.9 million.

Family-friendly sci-fi Earth To Echo was in sixth place with US$5.5 million in earnings.

It was just ahead of horror flick Deliver Us From Evil, which had US$4.7 million in ticket sales, in seventh place.

Angelina Jolie's Maleficent, a modern retelling of the life of Sleeping Beauty's arch-nemesis, grossed US$4.2 million for the weekend for eighth place.

Keira Knightley's musical rom-com Begin Again earned US$2.9 million.

Jersey Boys, Clint Eastwood's film adaptation of the hit Broadway musical about the 1960s rise to pop success of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, was in 10th at US$2.5 million.

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