… for they have brought life back to the megaplex.

“Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted” and “Prometheus” both opened strong with $60.4 million and $50 million, respectively, demonstrating that counterprogramming still works when the studios get the balance of audience appeal right. I don’t think there was a lot of crossover between the talking-animal fans (well, not the fans of these particular talking animals, anyway) and the heady sci-fi crowd.

Last week’s ruler, “Snow White and the Huntsman”, did a decent $23 million to place third, while the previous week’s topper “Men in Black 3” took fourth with $13.5 million. And in fifth place, Joss Whedon’s “Avengers” movie made another $10.8 million. It’s now grossed $571.9 million domestically, and $1.4 billion globally. So on average, both of Joss Whedon’s features have made about $700 million. Way to go, “Serenity”!