Four weeks ago, the summer movie season started off with a super-powered bang in the form of Marvel’s The Avengers. Since then? It’s been difficult to prove that any other film was in theatres. That changed on Friday when Sony’s Men in Black 3 became the first post-Avengers release to take first place. From its very wide release in 4,248 locations (including 3D & IMAX), MIB3 took in an estimated $18 million. Despite becoming the first new number one title in 21 days, however, MIB3 is not looking like an automatic blockbuster. After a less-than enthusiastic midnight debut, projections for the film went from $90 million over the four-day Memorial Day frame down to a more modest $74 million. That’s about what the much-maligned Men in Black II made in its first four days (not adjusted for inflation) back in 2002. On a more positive note, Sony is expecting big numbers from MIB3’s international markets. As for The Avengers, Disney projects another $45 million for its superheroes through Memorial Day. Finally, Chernobyl Diaries – the latest from producer Oren Peli – earned an estimated $3.5 million on Friday from 2,433 locations towards what should be a $12 million four-day total. Ouch.

Title Friday Total 1 Men in Black 3 $18,000,000 $18 2 The Avengers $9,700,000 $486.4 3 Chernobyl Diaries $3,500,000 $3.5 4 Battleship $3,000,000 $36.5 5 The Dictator $2,600,000 $34.4