"Superbad" leads box office past $4 billion

Comedy "Superbad" proved to be super good at North American box offices, holding onto the No. 1 slot for the second straight weekend and pushing summer ticket sales above $4 billion for the first time ever, according to studio estimates on Sunday.
"Superbad" grossed $18 million over the weekend giving it a 10-day total of $68.6 million and making it one of the top comedies of the summer.
"The response to 'Superbad' has been no less than incredible," said Rory Bruer, president of distribution for Sony Pictures, the film's distributor.
The movie, which cost about $20 million to make, follows the antics of two high school friends on their quest for girls and booze.
This year's Hollywood summer season, which runs the first weekend of May through the September 3 Labor Day holiday in the United States, already has set a record in U.S. and Canadian ticket sales.
With one weekend to go, the current $4.003 billion in domestic ticket sales has topped 2004's record $3.95 billion, according to box office tracker Media By Numbers.
Meanwhile, action-thriller "The Bourne Ultimatum" climbed one place and grabbed the No. 2 slot with an estimated weekend gross of $12.4 million in its fourth week of release. The Universal Pictures release, the latest installment in the Jason Bourne espionage series, has grossed a total of $185.1 million.
"Rush Hour 3," starring Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker as two hapless cops, came in third with $12.3 million for New Line Cinema.
Late August is a slow period for new releases and none of the movies opening this weekend were expected to be hits.
Two new movies -- Universal's "Mr. Bean's Holiday" and Lionsgate's "War," -- rounded out the top five with grosses of $10.1 and $10 million, respectively.
"Mr. Bean's Holiday," a film that follows the misadventures of oddball British character Mr. Bean in France, already has been an international hit with $189.3 million, excluding U.S. and Canadian sales, according to Media by Numbers, a Web site that tracks box office figures.
Sony Pictures is a unit of Japanese electronics maker Sony Corp. Universal Pictures is part of the NBC Universal media wing of General Electric Co. New Line Cinema is part of Time Warner Inc, and Lionsgate is a public company.