Denzel Washington fought his way to the top of the North American box office in action-thriller The Equalizer, which earned $35m in its first weekend out, industry estimates showed on Sunday.
The film knocked science-fiction Fox production to second place. Based on James Dashner's best-selling 2007 young adult dystopian novel of the same name, the film raked in $17.5m in its second weekend in theatres.
Meanwhile The Boxtrolls, an animated film about an orphaned human boy who is raised underground by friendly monsters, came in third with $17.3m, according to box office tracker Exhibitor Relations.
Comedy-drama This Is Where I Leave You, landed in fourth in its second week out, taking in $7m.
In fifth place for a second week was Dolphin Tale 2, a family-friendly sequel starring Morgan Freeman and Ashley Judd, which earned $4.8m.