"The Dark Knight" leads box office for third weekend

LOS ANGELES (Reuters)
- Batman narrowly fended off the new "Mummy" sequel to lead the weekend
box office in North America for a third weekend, while moviegoers
rejected Kevin Costner's new political comedy "Swing Vote."

"The Dark Knight" earned $43.8 million for the three days beginning
Friday, distributor Warner Bros. Pictures said on Sunday. Universal's
"The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor" followed with $42.5 million.

Walt Disney Co's "Swing Vote" came in at No. 6 with just $6.3 million,
the latest disappointment for Costner, who has not had a $100 million
movie since 1992's "The Bodyguard."

The total for "The Dark Knight" rose to $394.9 million. Warner Bros., a
unit of Time Warner Inc, said it expects the film to add at least $100
million, likely becoming the No. 2 movie of all time in North America.
"Titanic" holds the record with $601 million, ahead of 1977's "Star
Wars" and its two reissues with $461 million.

"The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor" came in below pundits'
forecasts of an opening in the $50 million range, bruised by the Batman
juggernaut. The Brendan Fraser film actually beat "The Dark Knight" on
Friday but the reigning champ bounced back on the next two days. (The
Sunday component of the data is an estimate; final data will be issued
on Monday.)

Universal, a unit of General Electric Co, said "The Mummy" was big
internationally. The film, set in China and co-starring Jet Li and
Michelle Yeoh, opened to $59.5 million from 28 territories.

Fraser has had a low profile since appearing as part of the ensemble in
the Oscar-winning 2004 movie "Crash." But he now has two movies in the
top 5, with "Journey to the Center of the Earth" at No. 5 with a
four-week total of $73.1 million.