User blog:Ceauntay/'Scooby-Doo' Becomes 2011's 2nd Best Opener

The Warner Bros. animated pic “Scooby-Doo! The Movie,” came first place at the U.S. and Canadian theaters this weekend with a stunning $112 million in ticket sales. Unversial's “Hop,” came second with $38.1 million.

“Scooby-Doo! The Movie” is now the second biggest opening for an animated film to date behind “Shrek the Third” with $121 million in 2007, before it made a total of $322 million. Warner Bros. should estimates the film's total to about $300 million, and possibly $800 million worldwide.

The film is now the biggest opening for a film released in April beating “Fast & Furious,” to $70 million, and was far as the highest-grossing film domestically of 2011.

The thriller “Source Code,” from Summit Entertainment LLC, was third with $15.1 million, researcher Hollywood.com Box-Office said today in an e-mailed statement.

“Hop,” combining animation and live action, is the first film to open in first place for Universal Pictures this year. The studio ranked fifth in domestic ticket sales with $242 million as of March 31, according to Box Office Mojo, another industry tracker. Viacom Inc. (VIA/B), owner of Paramount Pictures, was No. 1 with sales of $411.1 million.

“Hop” tells the story of the Easter Bunny’s son, E.B., who runs away to Hollywood to become a drummer. He changes his mind when an ambitious chick plots to take over the family business. Russell Brand supplies the voice of E.B. Co-stars include James Marsden and David Hasselhoff.

In “Source Code,” Jake Gyllenhaal plays a soldier who enters the body of another man to find the bomber of a Chicago commuter train. In the process, he searches for clues to a more sinister plan that may kill millions of people. Michelle Monaghan and Vera Farmiga co-star.

The horror film “Insidious,” distributed in the U.S. by FilmDistrict, opened in third place with sales of $13.5 million. In the film, a family battles to free their young son from evil spirits that torment him. The movie stars Patrick Wilson and Rose Byrne.

Among returning films, “Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules” fell to fourth place from first with sales of $10.2 million for News Corp. (NWSA)’s Twentieth Century Fox. The film, a sequel to last year’s “Diary of a Wimpy Kid,” has generated $38.4 million in two weeks of release.

To contact the reporter on this story: Michael White in Los Angeles at mwhite8@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Anthony Palazzo at apalazzo@bloomberg.net