Weekend Box Office

1) Paul Blart: Mall Cop $$21.5 million

2) Underworld: The Rise of The Lycans $20.7 million

3) Gran Torino $16 million

4) Hotel for Dogs $12.3 million

5) Slumdog Millionaire $10.5 million

6) My Bloody Valentine 3-D $10 million

7) Inkheart $7.7 million

8) Bride Wars $7 million

9) The Curious Case of Benjamin Button $6 million

10) Notorious $5.7 million

For the second week in a row, Kevin James' security guard managed to keep his strangle hold on America. Paul Blart: Mall Cop came in first place at the box office, adding another $21.5 million to his savings account. So far, this fumbling comedy has earned $64.8 million and it has no intentions of slowing down. Paul Blart: Mall Cop is the first official hit of the New Year, and it will more than likely see $100 million before its out of theaters. Plus, look for it to make bank when it hits the home video market. I doubt this is the last we've seen of Blart or James.

Coming in second place was the werewolves versus vampires sequel Underworld: The Rise of The Lycans. This third outing in the franchise managed to pull in $20.7 million, which just wasn't enough to squash that pesky mall cop. This week's only other major new release was Inkheart. It failed to impress the crowds, slipping all the way to number seven with just $7.7 million to its name. It's poor performance just might mark the end of children's' novel adaptations. For the moment, anyway.

The film with the highest per screen average this week was Slumdog Millionaire, which was certainly helped by its Academy Award nominations. Playing on 1,411 screens, it earned $7,477 at each location for a total of $10.5 million. Two other films opened in limited release. The aliens versus Vikings adventure Outlander earned $53,200 playing on 81 screens, while the long-shelved Elmore Leonard adaptation Killshot brought in $10,060 on just five screens.

Next week doesn't offer Paul Blart: Mall Cop much competition. Liam Neeson returns to the screen to avenge his daughter's kidnapping in Taken, more ghosts abound in The Uninvited, and Renee Zellweger drops the comedy bomb New in Town. It should be a fun fight.