Madea Goes to the Top of the Box Office

Proving that America just can’t get enough of a man in granny drag, hit maker Tyler Perry did it again with Madea Goes to Jail. Not only was the comedy the number one movie this weekend, but it also clocked in as the highest weekend opening yet for any Tyler Perry film, taking in $41.1 million at the box office.

Meanwhile, the weekend’s other debut wide release showed that not even an hour and 30 minutes of pure team spirit can ensure box office success, as Fired Up, with Eric Christian Olsen and Nicholas D’Agosto playing high school football studs “stuck” at cheerleading camp, languished in the 9th spot with just $6 million.

Taken took second place with a distant but strong $11.4 million, bringing its four week total just shy of the $100 million mark with $95.1 million. With just a 25 percent drop from last week, Coraline came in third with $11 million while He’s Just Not That Into You came in 4th with 8.5 million, pushing its total gross to $70.1 million.

Rounding out the top five was Slumdog Millionaire, climbing four spots from last week and taking in $8 million, bringing its domestic gross to $98 million.

Next week the Jonas Brothers will try to rise to the top of more than just the Billboard charts with Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience. The teenybopper fans will surely come out in droves but will they be enough to rival cult video gamers who’ll want to see if Kristin Kreuk’s got the goods (well, mostly the muscular thighs) to bring beloved character Chun-Li to life in Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li? And then there’s Crossing Over, a small film that’s big in star power with Harrison Ford, newly-minted Oscar winner Sean Penn and Ashley Judd all starring. Check back at our Top of the Box Office report next week to see which movie comes out on top.