"Get Smart," starring Steve Carell and Anne Hathaway, is the latest big-screen adaptation of the popular 1960s sitcom about the bumbling US agent Maxwell Smart on a mission to stop a plot by the evil crime syndicate known as KAOS.

Meanwhile, Paramount's heavily-marketed comedy "The Love Guru," the weekend's other new wide release, is pegged to finish in a sad fourth place at the box office, with just US$14 million in receipts, the Los Angeles-based box office tracking firm Media By Numbers predicted.

In a near-tie for second place were two movies that premiered earlier. DreamWorks Animation's "Kung Fu Panda" will take in US$21.7 million over the weekend, narrowly followed by last week's box office leader, Marvel Studios' "The Incredible Hulk," with an estimated take of US$21.6 million.

The panda movie has grossed estimated 155.6 million dollars in North America since its release three weeks ago, and the hulk, in its second week of release, has a track record of US$96.4 million. The two films were close enough that their rankings could change when final numbers are released today.