Movies

LOS ANGELES – A martial arts dream team – Jackie Chan and Jet Li – won the weekend as their movie matchup The Forbidden Kingdom debuted at No. 1 with $20.9 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

The tale of a modern American teen hurtled back in time to a kung fu adventure in ancient China, The Forbidden Kingdom features Asian superstars Mr. Chan and Mr. Li in multiple roles and showcases their first on-screen duel.

"I couldn't believe it had never been done before," said Harvey Weinstein, whose Weinstein Co. released The Forbidden Kingdom along with partner Lionsgate.

Universal's romantic comedy Forgetting Sarah Marshall, starring Jason Segel as a nice guy who's dumped by his glamorous girlfriend (Kristen Bell), opened in second place with $17.3 million. It's the latest from producer Judd Apatow (Knocked Up).

The previous weekend's No. 1 movie, the slasher remake Prom Night, fell to third with $9.1 million.

Al Pacino's serial-killer thriller 88 Minutes, from Sony's TriStar Pictures, was a dud, premiering at No. 4 with $6.8 million. The movie stars Mr. Pacino as a crime profiler who receives a call telling him he has 88 minutes to live.

The documentaryExpelled: No Intelligence Allowed debuted at No. 9 with $3.1 million. Released by Rocky Mountain Pictures, the film features Ben Stein as he challenges Darwinian theories that prevail in academic circles and suggests that life could have emerged through intelligent design.

Here are the estimated weekend totals for the top 10 films.

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