Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs 2 Dominates US Box Office

After the bleak dramatics of Prisoners won the weekend last week, America’s cinemagoers were clearly ready for some bright new animation to enjoy with the family instead. So Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs 2 was in prime position to score well, and launched at the top spot with $35 million.

Prisoners held strongly, however, slipping only to second place and $11.3 million. Ron Howard’s Formula One drama Rush actually opened last week on limited release, but with a huge screen expansion it soared to third with $10.3 million. That put it ahead of the new rom-com Baggage Claim at fourth ($9.3 million) and Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s directorial debut, Don Jon, which arrived in fifth with $9 million. Given that JGL made it for $6 million, that’s not a bad start.

Insidious Chapter 2 fell to sixth place with $6.7 million, with The Family down to seventh and $3.6 million. Instructions Not Included was eighth with $3.3 million and We’re The Millers dropped to ninth, earning $2.8 million. In 10th place was Lee Daniels’ The Butler, which added $2.4 million for an impressive $110.2 million so far.