Martial arts adventure "The Forbidden Kingdom" ruled over the box office in North America this weekend as the movie featuring Chinese superstars Jackie Chan and Jet Li together for the first time debuted about US$20.9 million over the three-day period, preliminary figures released yesterday showed.

The film, jointly released by Lionsgate and the Weinstein Co., tells the story of a modern American teenage hurtled back in time to ancient China, where he is charged with a task to free the fabled warrior the Monkey King with the help from kung fu masters played by Jackie Chan and Jet Li.

Two other new releases premiered in the top five list, with Universal's heavily-marketed romantic comedy "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" coming in at second place, with an estimated US$17.3 million, according to box office tracking firm Media By Numbers.

"88 Minutes," a serial killer thriller starring Al Pacino, debuted at No. 4 with US$6.8 million, following last week's box office leader "Prom Night," which fell to third with US$9.1 million.

The 12 top-selling movies took in US$82.1 million collectively this weekend in the United States and Canada, up 12 percent from the same period last year and representing the first up weekend in more than a month, as Hollywood heads toward the often hot summer season.