Inception Takes Third Weekend, Leaves 'Schmucks' Behind

Christopher Nolan's Inception, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, took the box office crown for the third weekend in a row, falling just over 35% for a $27.5 million take.  With $193 million in grosses to date, the film continues to be a huge success for distributor Warner Bros.

The second place slot went to newcomers Dinner for Schmucks, from Paramount/Dreamworks Pictures.  The Steve Carrell/Paul Rudd comedy opened with a respectable $23.3 million.

In third place was Salt, starring Angelina Jolie.  The film fell 46.5% in its second weekend, bringing in another $19.2 million.  With $70.8 million in grosses so far, the $110 million film will likely make it into the black, but will require international grosses and home video sales to do it.

Despicable Me took fourth place, bringing in $15.5 million after falling 34% week-over-week.  The animated comedy has brought in $190 million in grosses so far, against a $69 million production budget.

Finally the fifth place slot went to another newcomer, Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore.  The live-action family comedy sequel opened with $12.5 million, a significant drop from the original film, which opened with $21.7 million in 2001.  Of course, 9 years is a long time to wait for a sequel of this type, the audience for the original film has likely outgrown the premise by now.