LOS ANGELES - Will Ferrell's basketball comedy "Semi-Pro" dribbled to the top of the weekend box office, but it fell short of his previous blockbuster openings in the sports spoof genre, according to studio estimates Sunday.

The New Line Cinema film, starring Ferrell as the owner of a fictional basketball franchise, grossed $15.3 million in its weekend debut at theatres in Canada and the United States.

That was lackluster compared to Ferrell's 2006 NASCAR parody "Talledega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby,'' which opened at $47 million, and last year's figure skating comedy "Blades of Glory,'' which earned $33 million in its first weekend.

Box-office analysts said "Semi-Pro'' likely suffered because it was released during a normally slow season and was rated R, while "Talledega Nights'' and "Blades of Glory'' were rated PG-13.

"Will Ferrell is always a draw and audiences love him. But this particular weekend is not quite as strong as his earlier efforts,'' said Paul Dergarabedian, president of the box-office tracker Media By Numbers LLC.

New Line representatives declined to comment. Last week, media conglomerate Time Warner Inc. announced that New Line would be merged with its Warner Bros. Entertainment studio to cut costs and improve profitability.

Last weekend's top film, the Sony Pictures terrorism thriller "Vantage Point,'' dropped to second place with $13 million in ticket sales, bringing its two-week domestic total to $41 million.

Sony's new release "The Other Boleyn Girl'' performed better than expected, opening at No. 4 with $8.3 million at 1,166 theatres. Its $7,118 per theatre average outdistanced other movies in the marketplace.

The weekend's other opening, the Summit Entertainment fantasy romantic comedy "Penelope,'' debuted in eighth place with $4 million.

Box-office revenues overall were down for the third straight week. The top 12 movies grossed $81 million, down 10 per cent from last weekend and 25 per cent from the same weekend in 2007.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theatres, according to Media By Numbers LLC. Final figures will be released Monday.

  1. "Semi-Pro,'' $15.3 million.
  2. "Vantage Point,'' $13 million.
  3. "Spiderwick Chronicles,'' $8.8 million.
  4. "The Other Boleyn Girl,'' $8.3 million
  5. "Jumper,'' $7.6 million.
  6. "Step Up 2 The Streets,'' $5.7 million.
  7. "Fool's Gold,'' $4.7 million.
  8. "Penelope,'' $4 million.
  9. "No Country For Old Men,'' $4 million.
  10. "Juno,'' $3.4 million.