The Last Stand is the third and final part of the X-Men trilogy

The film, starring Hugh Jackman and Halle Berry, took �7.09m in its first three days on release.

The Da Vinci Code, which opened to controversy and hype, dropped to second place in the chart after just one week in the top spot.

Computer animated caper The Wild, featuring the voice of Kiefer Sutherland, was a new entry at three.

New entries

The Disney film took �1,033,153 and edged Tom Cruise's Mission Impossible into fourth place.

The spy thriller, which took �756,785 between Friday and Sunday, has spent four weeks in the chart.

UK AND IRELAND BOX OFFICE TOP FIVE 1. X-Men: The Last Stand - �7.09m 2. The Da Vinci Code - �4.92m 3. The Wild - �1.03m 4. Mission: Impossible III - �756,785 5. Faana - �413,410 Source: Screen International

Other new entries in the Top 10 include Indian film Faana at five, and Friends With Money at nine.

Curious George, the animated adaptation of H A and Margret Rey's children's' books about an inquisitive monkey, was another new entry at six, ringing up �330,232 in receipts.

Romantic comedy Prime, starring Uma Thurman, fell four places to seven, while animated film Ice Age 2: The Meltdown fell four places to number nine, taking �130,112.

US comedy Waiting, starring Ryan Reynolds, rounds out the top 10.