 The Da Vinci Code stars Paul Bettany as murderous monk Silas |
The Da Vinci Code movie has taken �9.5m at box offices in the UK and Ireland in its first three days of release. That puts it at number 15 on the all-time list of the most successful opening weekends, according to box office company Nielsen EDI.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, which made �23.9m when it made its debut in 2004, holds the record.
And The Da Vinci Code is not the top film of 2006 so far - Ice Age 2 took �275,000 more in its first weekend.
The film performed less well in these countries than it has in the rest of the world.
 | UK AND IRELAND BOX OFFICE TOP FIVE 1. The Da Vinci Code - �9.5m 2. Mission: Impossible III - �1.84m 3. Prime - �562,000 4. Ice Age II - �457,000 5. Waiting - �308,000 Friday-Sunday. Source: UK Film Council/Nielsen EDI |
It took $224m (�119m) in ticket sales around the globe between Friday and Sunday, according to studio estimates - putting it second on the all-time international list. Only Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith, which earned $253m (�135m) in its first weekend last year, has made more money on its debut.
In the US and Canada, The Da Vinci Code raked in $77m (�41m) in its first weekend - the 13th highest opening takings in North American film history.
But it easily eclipsed its box office rivals in the UK and Ireland this weekend, with Mission: Impossible III a distant second with �1.8m.
Uma Thurman's romantic comedy Prime is in third with �562,000, with Ice Age 2: The Meltdown still popular in fourth place with �457,000.
Meanwhile, the government in the north-east Indian state of Nagaland has decided to ban The Da Vinci Code because they say it is "blasphemous and offensive".
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