New 'Nightmare' scares up $32.2M to open on top (AP)

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Hollywood.com. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. "A Nightmare on Elm Street," $32.2 million.

2. "How to Train Your Dragon," $10.8 million.

3. "Date Night," $7.6 million.

4. "The Back-up Plan," $7.2 million.

5. "Furry Vengeance," $6.5 million.

6. "The Losers," $6 million.

7. "Clash of the Titans," $5.98 million.

8. "Kick-ass," $4.5 million.

9. "Death at a Funeral," $4 million.

10. "Oceans," $2.6 million.

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A remake of the slasher flick "A Nightmare on Elm Street" led the weekend with a $32.2 million debut, according to studio estimates Sunday. Released by the Warner Bros. banner New Line, the movie features Jackie Earle Haley as Krueger, a psycho killer who stalks and slays victims in their dreams.

Fright films typically drop steeply in their second weekends, since hardcore horror fans rush out to see them in the first few days. But the remake already is headed toward a solid profit after an opening weekend that roughly matched its modest production budget of just over $30 million.

Given the history of slasher sagas — the original 1984 "A Nightmare on Elm Street" was followed by seven sequels — the franchise likely has a long life ahead of it.

"It's certainly something we would entertain, the same with 'Friday the 13th,'" another New Line horror series that was revived last year and has a sequel in the works, said Dan Fellman, head of distribution at Warner Bros.

"A Nightmare on Elm Street" was unable to match the fresh start of "Friday the 13th," whose remake had a $40 million opening weekend in February 2009.