'Deadpool' blasts North America box office records

Superhero movie "Deadpool" dominated the North American box office on its debut weekend, taking in a record breaking $135 million and leaving its competitors in the dust, industry estimates showed Sunday.

Starring Ryan Reynolds as a Marvel Comics character, the film's blow out reception in theaters propelled it to the biggest-ever February and R-rated debut, said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at comScore.

With Monday being a public holiday in the United States, Dergarabedian predicted the Fox production's initial haul could climb to a "mind-boggling $150 million."

Far behind in second place was "Kung Fu Panda 3" -- Dreamworks' computer-animated comedy that follows the adventures of Po as he evolves from martial arts student to teacher -- which took in $19.7 million, industry tracker Exhibitor Relations said.

Featuring the voices of Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman and Angelina Jolie, it has garnered $93 million since its release.

Also making its debut -- in third place -- was "How to be single," a comedy about solo life set in New York City starring Dakota Johnson, Rebel Wilson and Leslie Mann.

It saw $18.8 million in ticket sales over Valentine's Day weekend.

Fourth place went to fellow new release "Zoolander 2," which snagged $15.7 million.

Starring, directed and co-written by Ben Stiller, the comedy that dips into the fashion world also features Penelope Cruz and Owen Wilson.

Coming in fifth was "The Revenant," a grisly survival and revenge thriller starring Leonardo DiCaprio. The critically acclaimed film, which has been showered with Oscar nominations, took in $6.9 million.

Rounding out the top 10 were:

-- "Hail, Caesar!," $6.6 million

-- "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," $6.2 million

-- "The Choice," $5.3 million

-- "Ride Along 2," $4.1 million

-- "The Boy," $2.9 million