In this publicity image released by Warner Bros. Pictures, Lili Taylor portrays Carolyn Perron, left, and Joey King portrays Christine in a scene from "The Conjuring." The films opens nationwide on Friday, July 19.(AP Photo/New Line Cinema/Warner Bros. Pictures, Michael Tackett) SAN DIEGO (AP) — Moviegoers were ready for a fright this weekend, sending "The Conjuring" into first place at the box office. The Warner Bros. haunted-house horror — based on a true story — debuted with $41.5 million in North American ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday. Starring Vera Farmiga, Lili Taylor, Patrick Wilson and Ron Livingston, "The Conjuring" unseated three-week box-office champ, "Despicable Me 2," which dropped to second place with $25 million.
by Jake CoyleAP Entertainment Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — NEW YORK (AP) — The minions of "Despicable Me 2" ran away with the July 4th box office, leaving the Johnny Depp Western "The Lone Ranger" in the dust.
"Monsters University" (AP Photo/Disney-Pixar) by Sandy Cohen LOS ANGELES (AP) — Turns out zombies and Superman are no match for monsters. Disney's "Monsters University" is the weekend box-office winner, according to studio estimates released Sunday. The animated family film, which reunites stars Billy Crystal and John Goodman and their characters from the 2001 hit "Monsters, Inc.," debuted in first place with $82 million, beating out swarming zombies in "World War Z" and Superman himself in "Man of Steel." "The diversity of this weekend is part of what makes this business so great," said Dave Hollis, Disney's head of distribution. "It's a really extraordinary weekend for the industry."
MERCENARIES--Dwayne Johnson, Anthony Mackie and Mark Wahlberg in a scene from "Pain and Gain." (AP Photo/Paramount Pictures, Jaime Trueblood) by David Germain LOS ANGELES (AP) — "Iron Man 3" was the heavy-lifter at theaters with a colossal overseas debut that overshadowed a gang of mercenary bodybuilders in a sleepy pre-summer weekend at the domestic box office.
MOVIE YANKED--Actor Leonardo DiCaprio poses for a photo call during a press conference to promote his new film "DJango Unchained" in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Junji Kurokawa) by Didi Tang BEIJING (AP) — "Django Unchained" became "Django Unscreened" on Thursday as Quentin Tarantino's violent slave-revenge saga was pulled from Chinese theaters on its opening day, with the importer blaming an unspecified technical problem.
