Mark Rylance is the "Big Friendly Giant" in The BFG, while Ruby Barnhill (right) plays Sophie
The BFG beat fellow new release Star Trek Beyond at the UK and Ireland box office in a weekend that also saw screenings of a classical concert make more money than Ghostbusters.
Steven Spielberg's film adaptation of Roald Dahl's family favourite took £5.2m between Friday and Sunday, while the latest Star Trek film took £4.7m.
Third place, meanwhile, was taken by Andre Rieu's 2016 Maastricht Concert.
Screenings of the event made £1.4m, topping the new Ghostbusters' £1.3m.
The female-led "reboot" of the 1984 fantasy comedy topped the UK and Ireland box office last week.
Star Trek Beyond, the 13th film in the Trek series and the third to feature younger versions of the original show's characters, was the top film in the US and Canada over the weekend.
Karl Urban (l) and Zachary Quinto reprise their "Bones" and Spock roles in Star Trek Beyond
Rieu's orchestral show, which featured a 60-piece orchestra and singers, is now the UK's highest-grossing music concert, according to Screen Daily, external.
The previous box office record for a concert screened in UK cinemas was set by Rieu himself last year.
The Dutch violinist's 2015 concert made £1.1m from 460 cinemas - more than 100 fewer than screened this year's event.
This week's top five was rounded out by The Secret Life of Pets, which took £1.2m on its fifth weekend on release.
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- Published25 July 2016
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