Both films were making their debut but the former, starring Milla Jovovich, took $20.6 million in receipts, ahead of "Finding Nemo," which earned $17.5 million, according to box office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

Last week's number one, "The Possession," a supernatural thriller starring Kyra Sedgwick, was knocked into third but it was a long way back on the leaders with just $5.8 million in takings this weekend.

Depression-era gangster tale "Lawless" fell from second place last week to fourth after earning $4.2 million, with "ParaNorman," an animated movie about a boy who can speak to the dead, ($3.04 million) holding on to fifth spot.

Action romp "The Expendables 2," starring Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger, continued its drop, finishing sixth this weekend on $3.03 million.

"The Words," a literary drama about an author who earns fame by stealing another writer's work, was in seventh place, with $2.88 million in sales, just ahead of "The Bourne Legacy" which earned $2.875 million.

In ninth place, quirky fantasy-comedy "The Odd Life of Timothy Green" brought in $2.5 million.

Rounding out the top 10 was political spoof "The Campaign," starring Will Ferrell and Zach Galifianakis, which took in $2.4 million.