'Contagion' sweeps through the weekend box office

"Contagion" infected the box office this weekend, producing the largest box office gross in a month to take the number one spot.

"Contagion" grossed $23.1 million.

The Steven Soderbergh-directed ensemble thriller earned an estimated $23.1 million in its debut weekend, the largest three-day total since the weekend of Aug. 12, during which "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" earned $27.5 million in its second week.

Since that time, there have been significantly more box office failures than successes, with the lone bright spot being "The Help," which dropped to number two this weekend after three straight weeks in the top spot. The film earned $8.7 million in its fifth week in theaters for a total of $137 million.

The mix-martial arts drama "Warrior" didn't have much of a punch, earning $5.6 million in its debut weekend, the only other newcomer to make it into the top 10.

Last week's number two film, "The Debt," fell to number four with $4.9 million and a total of $21 million.

"Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star," the other wide release of the weekend, utterly failed to shine, finishing with $1.4 million in 15th place. It's notable that the limited release "Laugh at My Pain" outdrew "Bucky Larson" with $2 million in only 97 theaters compared to the latter's 1,977

The weekend's top 10 grossing films according to studio estimates were: 

1. "Contagion," $23,135,000 (New)
2. "The Help," $8,691,000 (Total: $137 million)
3. "Warrior," $5,607,000 (New) 
4. "The Debt," $4,905,000 (Total: $21.9 million)
5. "Colombiana," $4,000,000 ($29.7 million)
6. "Rise of the Planet of the Apes," $3,875,000 (Total: $167.8 million) 
7. "Shark Night 3D," $3,533,000 ($14.8 million)  
8. "Apollo 18," $2,913,000 ($15 million)
9. "Our Idiot Brother," $2,761,000 ($21.4 million)
10. "Sky Kids: All the Time in the World," $2,506,000 ($34.2 million)

Weekend Box Office: 'The Debt' leads newcomers at the box office; 'The Help' stays on top

August's box office woes continued into the first weekend of September, with three new movies once again failing to unseat "The Help" from its number one position.

"The Debt" earned $9.6 million.

"The Help," which became the first movie since "Inception" to top the box office chart three weeks in a row, earned $14.2 million in its fourth weekend, bringing its total to $118 million. The film only dropped 2.3 percent compared its total last week.

"The Debt," starring Hellen Mirren, led the newcomers with  $9.6 million, good enough for second place, according to studio estimates. Although not a great opening total, it made its money on significantly fewer screens than its competition, 1,800 compared to 2,800 for "The Help" and "Shark Night 3D" and 3,300 for "Apollo 18."

Speaking of the horror thrillers, "Apollo 18" debuted with $8.7 million, with "Shark Night 3D" just behind at $8,640,000.

"Rise of the Planet of the Apes" continued its strong run, picking up $7.8 million in its fifth week for a total of $160 million.

Last week's "Columbiana" fell a respectable 28 percent to hold at sixth place, followed by "Our Idiot Brother" with $5.1 million and "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark" with $4.9 million. "Spy Kids: All the Time in the World" and "The Smurfs" rounded out the top 10.

With Labor Day on Monday, the films are expected to increase their holiday weekend totals, which will be reported tomorrow.

The three-day weekend top ten was as follows:

1. "The Help," $14,209,000 (Total: $118.6 million)
2. "The Debt," $9,667,000 (Total: $11.5 million)
3. "Apollo 18," $8,700,000 (New)
4. "Shark Night 3D," $8,640,000 (New) 
5. "Rise of the Planet of the Apes," $7,800,000 (Total: $160 million)
6. "Colombiana," $7,400,000 ($21.9 million)
7. "Our Idiot Brother," $5,182,000 ($15.4 million)
8. "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark," $4,941,000 ($16.3 million)
9. "Sky Kids: All the Time in the World," $4,637,000 ($29 million)
10. "The Smurfs," $4,000,000 (Total: $131.9 million)