BOX OFFICE BEAT DOWN: Audiences Get Obsessed with $28.5 Million

Weekend Box Office:

1) Obsessed $28.5 million
2) 17 Again $11.6 million
3) Fighting $11.4 million
4) The Soloist $9.7 million
5) Earth $8.5 million
6) Monsters Vs. Aliens $8.5 million
7) State of Play $$6.8 million
8) Hannah Montana: The Movie $6.3 million
9) Fast & Furious $6 million
10) Crank High Voltage $2.4 million

Forcing an incredible upset at the box office this weekend, Beyonce Knowles went toe to toe with Ali Larter in one of the greatest catfights ever witnessed on the silver screen and won the top spot with $28.5 million. It is the eighth highest opening weekend earner of the year, surprising most industry insiders with its ability to win an audience. It certainly proved that Beyonce Knowles can open bigger than Zac Efron, whose body-morphing comedy 17 Again took a hit, dipping down into second place for its second weekend on the charts. The film pulled in another $11.6 million, bringing its cumulative grossed to $39.9 million.

Three other new high profile films flooded the box office this past weekend. Fighting was number three with $11.4 million, while Robert Downey Jr.'s drama The Soloist tried to keep up in fourth place with $9.7 million. Disneynature's Earth, while playing on half as many screens as its competitors, only managed to climb into the number five spot with $8.5 million.

Despite a number of smaller films opening across the country, Obsessed managed to hold the second highest per screen average of the weekend, taking in an estimated $11,337 on each of its 2,514 screens. The film with the highest per screen average was the documentary Nursery University, which managed to pull in a whopping $13,100 on just one screen. Trailing behind was biographical documentary Tyson, which nabbed $7,818 on each of its eleven screens for an $86,000 take, and Il Divo, which made $14,000 on just two screens.

Next weekend marks the official start of the summer movie going season. X-Men Origins: Wolverine is set to drop, as is the romantic comedy Ghosts of Girlfriends Past. Who'll win? Heck, it might just be Beyonce Knowles again!