'Possession' wins box office

(EW.com) -- Fortunately, almost every movie at the box office did better than "The Oogieloves in the BIG Balloon Adventure" did this weekend!

Scaring up better-than-expected numbers, Lionsgate's $14 million horror entry "The Possession" topped the box office over Labor Day weekend with a strong $17.7 million from the Friday-to-Sunday period. The studio expects that the film, which earned a "B" CinemaScore grade will earn about $21.3 million through Monday. The picture yielded a sturdy $6,294 per theater average from 2,816 locations.

In second place, The Weinstein Company's "Lawless" found a lighter $9.7 million from 2,888 theaters over the three day frame. The Shia LaBeouf/Tom Hardy crime drama, which had already earned $2.1 million on Wednesday and Thursday, now has $11.8 million total. Its six-day gross will likely climb to $13.5 million when Monday's numbers are accounted. Audiences awarded "Lawless" a "B+" CinemaScore grade.

"The Expendables 2" continued to find solid enough grosses, yet run behind its predecessor in its third weekend. The action ensemble grossed another $8.8 million, which lifts its domestic total to $66.2 million The Expendables had earned $82.0 million at the same point in its run. At this point, Expendables 2 has no shot at breaking $100 million domestically.

In fourth place, "The Bourne Legacy" fell 22 percent to $7.2 million and has now earned $96.2 million total. In a few days, the film will pass the $100 million mark, which will mostly just be a PR victory. Universal's sequel won't earn back its $125 million budget domestically. Focus Features' "ParaNorman" rounded out the Top 5 with $6.6 million over three days. The dark 3-D kiddie flick has now earned $38 million total against an estimated $60 million budget.

1. The Possession -- $17.7 million

2. Lawless -- $9.7 million

3. The Expendables 2 -- $8.8 million

4. The Bourne Legacy -- $7.2 million

5. ParaNorman -- $6.5 million

Two blockbusters reached major milestones this weekend. The Avengers, which took in another $2.2 million domestically after expanding back into 1,705 theaters, passed $1.5 billion worldwide. And The Dark Knight Rises passed $1 billion worldwide following a strong showing in China. Other milestones achieved this weekend include Hope Springs, which passed $50 million, and Hit & Run, which passed.... $10 million (sad trombone).

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