Weekend Box Office: 'Possession' Surprises, 'Dark Knight' Passes $1 Billion

It seems that moviegoers were much more willing to brave a scary demonic possession than a drama starring Shia LaBoeuf, as "The Possession" took the top spot at the box office this weekend. The horror flick surprised, as horror flicks often do, with an estimated haul of $18.8 million over the weekend. That number should easily increase past $20 million on Labor Day.

"Lawless" was a distant second, with only about $9.6 million over the three-day weekend. Believe it or not, this is the first time in a long while that Shia LaBoeuf has had a financial flop, thanks in large part to his run with the "Transformers" series and with "Indiana Jones and the Series of Unlikely Feats." Sorry, I mean "Kingdom of the Crystal Skulls."

Three returning movies took 3rd through 5th place: "The Expendables 2" continued a decent but not outstanding run with $9.1 million ($68.9M total); "The Bourne Legacy" earned $7.4 million, bringing it almost to the $100 million mark (about $98.6M after Labor Day projected); and"ParaNorman" is hanging on with $6.6 million for a cume of about $40.5M after the holiday.

The summer's two superhero movies (and pretty much the only really successful movies of the summer) both passed big milestones this weekend: "The Dark Knight Rises" passed the $1 billion mark worldwide, and "The Avengers" passed the $1.5 billion mark, thanks in part to a limited theatrical re-release over the Labor Day weekend.

Overall, the weekend continues a recent trend of weak box office totals, and there isn't much hope on the horizon: unless "Resident Evil: Retribution" or "Dredd 3D" can pull in big money or a smaller indie or drama can hit it big, it's going to be a dismal September.

Here's the top 5, with cumulative totals based on 4-day weekend totals:

1. "The Possession" - $18.8 million
2. "Lawless" - $9.6 million
3. "The Expendables 2" - $9.1 million ($68.9M)
4. "The Bourne Legacy" - $7.4 million ($98.6M)
5. "ParaNorman" - $6.6 million ($40.5M)