‘G.I. Joe’ opens campaign at No. 1

G.I. Joe: The Rise of the Cobra was a big hit among U.S. movie-goers in its opening weekend, easily besting Julie & Julia, Box Office Mojo said.

The action film starring Dennis Quad and Christopher Eccleston pulled in an estimated $56.2 million in gate receipts to grab the No. 1 ranking. Julie & Julia, a biographical drama starring Meryl Streep, Amy Adams and Stanley Tucci, opened at No. 2 with $20.1 million in estimated ticket sales.

G-Force held on to the No. 3 spot at $9.8 million, followed by Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince at No. 4 with $8.88 million. Last weekend’s top movie, Adam Sandler’s Funny People, plummeted all the way to No. 5 at $7.87 million.

The Ugly Truth slipped to No. 6 with $7 million, while another new movie, A Perfect Getaway, a horror show written and directed by David Twohy, opened at No. 7 with $5.77 million in ticket sales.

Finishing up the top 10 were Aliens in the Attic at $4 million, Orphan at $3.73 million and (500) Days of Summer,” which was 12th last week, at just under $3.73 million.

The Hangover, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, The Proposal and Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs dropped out of the top rankings.