G.I. JOE BLASTS COMPETITION AT U.S. BOX OFFICE

G.I. JOE: THE RISE OF COBRA has blown away the competition at the U.S. box office, taking in $56.2 million (£37.5million) in its opening weekend (07-09Aug09).

The action blockbuster, starring Dennis Quaid, Channing Tatum and Sienna Miller, stomped out the competition and commanded the lead over Meryl Streep and Amy Adams’ new film Julie & Julia, about chef Julia Child.

The cooking comedy took in $20.1 million (£13.4million) at the second spot, while animated action film G-Force held on to number three with $9.8 million (£6.5million) in earnings.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the sixth instalment of the wizard franchise, slid from two to four with an additional $8.9 million (£5.9million) that brought its four-week total to $273.8 million (£182.5million).

But it was former box office champion Funny People that took the biggest dive. Judd Apatow’s comedy was knocked from the top spot to fifth with an additional $7.9 million (£5.3million) in its second week, taking the 10-day total to $40.4 million (£26.9million).