Men in Black sequel topples "Avengers" at box office

LOS ANGELES - Reuters

In this film image released by Sony Pictures, Tommy Lee Jones, right, and Will Smith star are shown in a scene from "Men in Black 3." (AP Photo/Columbia Pictures-Sony, Wilson Webb)

"Men in Black 3," the latest installment of Sony's alien comedy, zapped three-time champ "The Avengers," toppling it from the top of movie box office charts over the Memorial Day holiday weekend, studio estimates released on Sunday showed.
 
"MIB 3," starring Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones in roles they last played a decade ago, rang up an estimated $70 million in U.S. and Canadian ticket sales from Friday through Monday, distributor Sony Pictures estimated.
 
"Avengers" fell to second place with $47.1 million over the long weekend, and have sailed past $523 million domestically. Global sales for the blockbuster movie about a team of Marvel superheroes, surpassed $771 million in 54 countries through Sunday, according to distributor Walt Disney Co.
 
In third place, board game-inspired "Battleship" collected $13.6 million during its second weekend in theaters, and has totaled $47.1 million in the U.S. and Canada.
 
Sony Corp's movie studio released "Men In Black 3." "Battleship" was distributed by Universal Studios, a unit of Comcast Corp.