Despite the faint cries of many critics who complained of its laziness and lack of inspiration, Shrek The Third enjoyed a staggering opening weekend, bilking $123 million from families who probably thought Wild Hogs and Norbit were hilarious, too. That left the mighty Spider-Man 3 to finish a distant second at $28.5 million, which brings it about a week or two closer to the $300 million mark domestically. The other sequel on the charts, the superior 28 Weeks Later, continued to do tepid business with $5.1 million in its second week, having made the mistake of coming out at a time when the general public isn't interested in thoughtful, well-crafted entertainment. Of course, all three will have to step aside in a few days, when the last entry in an epic trilogy based on a frickin' theme park ride lumbers its way onto 4,000 screens. (We're sorry. We'll drop the snotty tone soon. Maybe.)
In limited release, the critically adored Irish musical Once, starring The Frames lead singer Glen Hansard, opened very strong on two screens, pulling in a $30,000 per screen average, which is actually a few hundred bucks higher than Shrek. It expands to several new cities on Friday.
More detailed numbers are available at Box Office Mojo.