Box Office Report: Oprah Helps 'Butler' in Box Office Bump

A bump of publicity from co-star Oprah Winfrey has helped "Lee Daniels' The Butler" open in first place at the North American box office this weekend.

The movie stars Academy Award-winner Forrest Whitaker, who has lived a long time in the Studio City hills area.

The movie is estimated to sell $25 million in tickets in the U.S. and Canada, and this marks the first number one opener for the Weinstein Co, in four years, said movie industry tracker Paul Dergarabedian.

The comedy "We're The Millers" checked into second place with $17.8 million, and is the strongest comedy this summer in terms of its staying power, Dergarabedian said. It has a $69.5 million sum over two weekends.

In third was "Elysium," with $13.6 million estimated this weekend, and $55.9 million over two weeks.

"Kick Ass 2" opened with $13.6 million, in fourth place.

Rounding out the 10 most-popular films in North America, as estimated by the studios, were "Planes ($13.1 million), "Percy Jackson: Sea Of Monsters" ($8.4 million), "Jobs" ($6.7 million), "2 Guns" ($5.6 million), "The Smurfs 2" ($4.6 million) and "The Wolverine" ($4.4 million).