`Paranormal Activity' dismembers `Saw' with $21.1M

Low-budget horror prevailed at the weekend box office as "Paranormal Activity" expanded to nationwide release and took the No. 1 spot with $21.1 million.

Shot for a reported $15,000, the independent horror sensation easily beat an established fright-film franchise as "Saw VI" opened at No. 2 with $14.1 million. It was the weakest debut ever for the "Saw" series, whose previous sequels all topped $30 million over opening weekend.

The top 20 movies at U.S. and Canadian theaters Friday through Sunday, followed by distribution studio, gross, number of theater locations, average receipts per location, total gross and number of weeks in release, as compiled Monday by Hollywood.com are:

1. "Paranormal Activity," Paramount, $21,104,070, 1,945 locations, $10,850 average, $61,580,588, five weeks.

2. "Saw VI," Lionsgate, $14,118,444, 3,036 locations, $4,650 average, $14,118,444, one week.

3. "Where the Wild Things Are," Warner Bros., $14,019,406, 3,735 locations, $3,754 average, $53,558,981, two weeks.

4. "Law Abiding Citizen," Overture, $12,403,888, 2,890 locations, $4,292 average, $40,008,703, two weeks.

5. "Couples Retreat," Universal, $10,620,685, 3,074 locations, $3,455 average, $77,736,885, three weeks.

6. "Astro Boy," Summit, $6,702,923, 3,014 locations, $2,224 average, $3,702,923, one week.

7. "Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant," Universal, $6,293,205, 2,754 locations, $2,285 average, $6,293,205, one week.

8. "The Stepfather," Sony Screen Gems, $6,230,969, 2,734 locations, $2,279 average, $20,082,652, two weeks.

9. "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs," Sony, $5,250,541, 2,741 locations, $1,916 average, $114,854,877, six weeks.

10. "Zombieland," Sony, $4,205,812, 2,447 locations, $1,719 average, $67,213,384, four weeks.

11. "Amelia," Fox Searchlight, $3,904,047, 820 locations, $4,761 average, $3,904,047, one week.

12. "A Serious Man," Focus, $1,093,217, 176 locations, $6,211 average, $3,196,496, four weeks.

13. "Toy Story" and "Toy Story 2" in 3-D," Disney, $1,009,900, 778 locations, $1,298 average, $30,144,903, four weeks.

14. "Good Hair," Roadside Attractions, $945,958, 466 locations, $2,030 average, $2,803,709, three weeks.

15. "The Invention of Lying," Warner Bros., $839,209, 802 locations, $1,046 average, $16,956,375, four weeks.

16. "Capitalism: A Love Story," Overture, $726,453, 636 locations, $1,142 average, $12,960,355, five weeks.

17. "Surrogates," Disney, $590,444, 797 locations, $741 average, $37,573,398, five weeks.

18. "Whip It," Fox Searchlight, $466,014, 435 locations, $1,071 average, $12,293,893, four weeks.

19. "An Education," Sony Pictures Classics, $367,371, 31 locations, $11,851 average, $940,265, three weeks.

20. "The Informant!", Warner Bros., $348,161, 411 locations, $847 average, $32,434,128, six weeks.

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Universal Pictures and Focus Features are owned by NBC Universal, a unit of General Electric Co.; Sony Pictures, Sony Screen Gems and Sony Pictures Classics are units of Sony Corp.; Paramount and Paramount Vantage are divisions of Viacom Inc.; Disney's parent is The Walt Disney Co.; Miramax is a division of The Walt Disney Co.; 20th Century Fox, Fox Searchlight Pictures and Fox Atomic are owned by News Corp.; Warner Bros. and New Line are units of Time Warner Inc.; MGM is owned by a consortium of Providence Equity Partners, Texas Pacific Group, Sony Corp., Comcast Corp., DLJ Merchant Banking Partners and Quadrangle Group; Lionsgate is owned by Lions Gate Entertainment Corp.; IFC Films is owned by Rainbow Media Holdings, a subsidiary of Cablevision Systems Corp.; Rogue Pictures is owned by Relativity Media LLC; Overture Films is a subsidiary of Liberty Media Corp.