Los Angeles: Walt Disney Co's animated fairy tale "Frozen" took hold of first place on movie charts in the United States and Canada, knocking three-time champion "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" to the No.3 spot for the weekend.
Second place went to new horror movie "Paranormal Activity: The Marked One", the latest film from the hit low-budget "Paranormal Activity" franchise.
"Frozen", in its seventh week of release, earned $20.7 million to claim the weekend box office crown, ahead of "The Marked Ones" which earned $18.2 million in ticket sales from Friday through Sunday, according to estimates from Rentrak.
Kristen Bell provides the voice for the lead character in "Frozen," the story of a Scandinavian princess on a search for her missing sister, the queen.
"The Marked Ones" introduces new characters outside the "Paranormal" stories. In the new film, a young man played by Andrew Jacobs learns he is marked for possession by a demon.
"Smaug," which took in $16.3 million after three straight weeks at No.1, is the second installment in the "Hobbit" fantasy series and follows the quest of Bilbo Baggins and a band of dwarves as they clash with a fire-breathing dragon.
Paramount Pictures, a unit of Viacom Inc, released "The Marked Ones". Time Warner Inc's Warner Bros. distributed "The Hobbit" sequel.
Source: Reuters
