‘2 Guns’ blasts to top of North American box office

Mark Wahlberg (L) and Denzel Wahington (R). AFP PHOTO

LOS ANGELES – Action comedy “2 Guns” blazed its way to the top of the North American box office this weekend as the Smurfs were left feeling blue, estimated figures showed Sunday.

Based on a popular comic book series, “2 Guns” stars Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg as criminals turned undercover cops battling a drug lord.

Estimates from box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations showed the film earned $27.4 million on its weekend debut.

In second place was “The Wolverine”, which sees the return of Hugh Jackman’s popular portrayal of the claw-knuckled X-men character. The film took $21.7 million in its second weekend.

But it was a dismal opening for cartoon sequel “Smurfs 2”. The 3-D animated sequel to 2011’s smash hit took in a disappointing $18.2 million, dealing another setback to Sony which is already under pressure after “White House Down” and “After Earth” flopped at the box office earlier this year.

In fourth place was horror film “The Conjuring,” starring Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga in a drama about paranormal investigators. The low-budget film added another $13.7 million in its third week, taking it past the $100 million barrier.

The hit animated comedy “Despicable Me 2,” meanwhile, dropped two places to fifth spot, with $10.4 million.

The film featuring the voice of funnyman Steve Carell as a villain-turned doting father remains the highest-earning movie of the top 12 films on release, having raked in $326.7 million dollars in North America so far.

Comedy sequel “Grown Ups 2” was in sixth spot, with $8.1 million, just ahead of animated children’s flick “Turbo” about a garden snail who dreams of racing in the Indy 500. “Turbo” took $6.4 million.

Action film “Red 2” was eighth, with a $5.6 million take on its third weekend in theaters. The sequel stars Bruce Willis, John Malkovich and Helen Mirren in a hunt for a missing nuclear device.

Sandra Bullock cop comedy “The Heat” was ninth with $4.7 million, just ahead of big-budget robots v monsters epic “Pacific Rim” which dropped three places to 10th. The Guillermo del Toro-directed science fiction film took $4.6 million.

Rounding out the top 12 were comedy “The Way, Way Back” and drama “Fruitvale Station.”