The vampire romance sequel “The Twilight Saga: New Moon” dominated the weekend box office, sucking in $140.7 million in its first three days, according to the Associated Press.

The second film based on Stephenie Meyer’s best-selling book  series also made $258.8 million worldwide, indicating the author’s saga isn’t just supernaturally popular in the United States. Overseas, “New Moon” debuted in 25 countries and sucked up $118.1 million.

The huge opening weekend for the Summit Entertainment release not only landed the sequel at No. 1 on the box-office charts, it also was more…

“The Twilight Saga: New Moon” has set a box-office record for midnight screenings, according to the Associated Press.

Summit Entertainment estimated today that the sequel earned $26.3 million after opening in the wee hours of the morning, the AP reports.

If the estimate proves on-target, it would break the previous midnight record, held by “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince,” which earned $22.2 million in its early-morning screenings this summer.

The 2008 sequel “The Dark Knight” comes in third on the midnight screenings list with $18.5 million.

“New Moon,” the second film in…

Global disaster meant big box-office dollars as ”2012,” doomsday specialist Roland Emmerich’s (”Independence Day,” “The Day After Tomorrow”) latest film, opened at No. 1 domestically with $65 million and blew up $225 million worldwide.

The Sony Pictures actioner, starring  John Cusack, Danny Glover and Chiwetel Ejiofor, has the remnants of humanity boarding giant arks as the earth’s crust shifts and waters flood most of the planet, according to the Associated Press.

“2012″ did $17.2 million in France, $15.3 million in Russia, $9.9 million in South Korea and $8.1 million in Spain.

Here in the U.S., “2012″ came in just short of…

The hit $15,000 thriller ”Paranormal Activity” has grown from its midnight-only showings in a handful of college towns to become a bona fide movie phenomenon. Distributor Paramount Pictures anticipated that the film would cross $100 million at the box office on Friday, after only five weekends of national release.

According to a Paramount news release, the movie has become the top grossing R-rated thriller of the past decade.

“Paranormal Activity” began its theatrical run with midnight-only screenings in 12 college towns across the U.S. and quickly developed into a nationwide hit, with fans visiting…

“Disney’s A Christmas Carol,” Robert Zemeckis and Jim Carrey’s high-tech take on the Charles Dickens holiday classic, took in $31 million over the weekend to debut in the top spot at the box office.

Zemeckis shot the movie using the same performance-capture technology used on his 2004 holiday offering “The Polar Express.” Carrey and his co-stars acted on a bare soundstage as digital cameras captured their performances, with computer animators later adding costumes, sets, props and other effects.

“A Christmas Carol” came in ahead of “Polar Express,” which had an opening weekend of $23.5…

The Halloween weekend was friendly to “Thriller” star Michael Jackson’s farewell film.

“Michael Jackson’s This Is It,” which opened last Wednesday, made $101 million worldwide in its first five days in theaters. According to the Associated Press, distributor Sony plans to extend the performance film beyond its originally planned two-week theatrical run.

The film was the No. 1 Halloween thriller domestically with a $21.3 million opening weekend, the AP reported. It raised its domestic total to $32.5 million.

The movie made $68.5 million overseas, including $10.4 million in Japan, $6.3 million in Germany, $5.8…

he gory and seemingly endless “Saw” franchise finally met its match over the weekend.

The micro-budgeted fright flick “Paranormal Activity” ascended to the No. 1 spot after its nationwide release over the weekend. 

In contrast, “Saw VI” debuted with just $14.8 million for second place. According to the Associated Press, the “Saw” franchise that has been an annual fixture before the Halloween holiday since 2004.

This was the worst opening ever for Lionsgate’s “Saw” series, whose previous low was $18.3 million for the original movie. Subsequent installments of the “Saw” franchise all opened at $30 million…

Director Spike Jonze’s long-awaited “Where the Wild Things Are,” a big-screen adaptation of Maurice Sendak’s beloved children’s book, debuted at No. 1 at the weekend box office with $32.5 million, according to the Associated Press.

Moviegoers 18 and older accounted for 43 percent of the audience, while parents with children made up 27 percent, the AP reported. Jonze viewed his version as a story about a child, but not necessarily a children’s movie, so those statistics seem appropriate.

It was a happy ending for the long-delayed film: During production, Jonze clashed with Warner…

Benefiting from a dearth of competition, the comedy “Couples Retreat,” which reunited “Swingers” co-stars Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau, topped the weekend box office with $35.3 million.

Despite poor reviews (it scored only 14 percent at RottenTomatoes.com), ”Couples Retreat,” the directing debut for Peter Billingsley (AKA “Ralphie” of ”A Christmas Story” fame) exceeded expectations for Universal Pictures. According to the Associated Press, the distributor hoped the movie would top the $20 million range.

The No. 1 opening came just days after a management shake-up that followed a summer of poor box office performers for Universal, which released the Will Ferrell dud “Land of the…

The undead took over the box office over the weekend, with the horror-comedy “Zombieland” coming in No. 1 with $25 million.

Although several new releases entered theaters, some familiar favorites fared well: After two weeks at No. 1, “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs” didn’t roll far. The animated movie made another $16.7 million for second place, according to the Associated Press.

Disney/Pixar’s double feature re-release of “Toy Story” and “Toy Story 2″ in 3-D made $12.5 million for third place. The double feature is getting a limited two-week run to prep audiences for the…