Wolverine slashes US competition

The film tells the back story of mutant James Logan who becomes Wolverine

The action adventure film X-Men Origins: Wolverine has slashed its way to the top of the North American box office, early figures show.

The comic book prequel took $87m (£58.2m) in its opening weekend despite an unfinished copy being leaked on the internet a month before its release.

Globally, the movie took another $73m (£49m) in ticket sales.

The film, starring Hugh Jackman, tells the story of mutant Logan who seeks revenge for his girlfriend's death.

Chris Aronson of Twentieth Century Fox called the opening figure "fantastic" after estimating a $70m (£47m) opening.

US BOX OFFICE 1. X-Men Origins: Wolverine - $87m 2. Ghosts of Girlfriends Past - $15.3m 3. Obsessed - $12.2m 4. 17 Again - $6.4m 5. Monsters vs Aliens - $5.8m Source: Media By Numbers

He also noted box office takings may have been affected by other issues including the swine flu outbreak that shut cinemas in Mexico and a high profile basketball game in the US.

Aronson added he was confident the film would still continue to perform well, despite the release of other big budget films in May including Star Trek, Terminator: Salvation and The Da Vinci Code sequel, Angels and Demons.

"When there are quality films to be seen, the marketplace will expand to accommodate everybody," he said.

Elsewhere on the chart, romantic comedy Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, starring Matthew McConaughey and Jennifer Garner, opened at number two with $15.3m (£10.3m).

Last week's number one, stalking thriller Obsessed, fell two places to three, while Zac Efron comedy 17 Again remained at four.

Animated film Monsters vs Aliens climbed back up the chart to five.