Box Office: 'Rio' flies past 'Madea's Big Happy Family' to stay no. 1

'Water for Elephants' has solid opening with $17.5 million

By AP Staff Sunday, Apr 24, 2011 1:16 PM

"Rio" is soaring all over the globe. The animated hit has made $286 million worldwide.

Credit: 20th Century Fox

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Anne Hathaway and Jake Eisenberg's talking birds have edged out Tyler Perry's sass-talking grandma at the weekend box office.

Hathaway and Eisenberg's animated family adventure "Rio" took in $26.8 million to remain the No. 1 movie for the second-straight weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday.

"Tyler Perry's Madea's Big Happy Family" debuted a close second with $25.8 million, another solid opening for writer-director Perry, who also stars as boisterous, opinionated grandma Madea.

Reese Witherspoon and Robert Pattinson's circus romance "Water for Elephants" premiered in third-place with $17.5 million.

A love-bird story centered on rare parrots, "Rio" raised its domestic total to $81.3 million. The movie has taken in $204.7 million more overseas, for a worldwide haul of $286 million.