Tom Hardy, Kelly Marcel attend the Premiere Of Columbia Pictures’ “Venom” at Regency Village Theatre

Superhero blockbuster "Venom" saved the day at the North American box office this weekend, pulling in more than $80 million in ticket sales, industry data showed on Monday. The film, a Spider-Man spinoff marking the official launch of Sony's Marvel Universe, stars Tom Hardy as a journalist who becomes the host for an alien symbiote that gives him superpowers. The character is a villain in the "Spider-Man" comic book world. Industry tracker Exhibitor Relations said the film took in $80.3 million. That was enough to break October's opening weekend record by more than $20 million, said another industry tracker, Box Office Mojo.

Another new release took second place. Musical romance "A Star Is Born" earned $42.9 million over the three-day weekend, Exhibitor Relations said. The third remake of the 1937 film of the same name, it marks Bradley Cooper's directing debut. He also stars as a musician who discovers and falls in love with a young singer played by pop superstar Lady Gaga.

Third place went to Warner Bros's "Smallfoot," with earnings of $14.4 million in its second weekend. The comic family animation tells the story of a group of Yeti who come across a human, with voicing by Channing Tatum, LeBron James and Danny DeVito. Coming in fourth was last weekend's champion, Universal's "Night School," whose earnings dropped $15 million to $12.5 million this weekend. The raucous comedy stars Kevin Hart as one student in a class of misfits working toward high school diplomas under the firm tutelage of Tiffany Haddish.

Fifth place went to Universal's family-friendly offering "The House With a Clock in Its Walls," which slipped from third place last weekend with takings of $7.3 million.

Rounding out this weekend's top 5 were:

"A Simple Favor" ($3.4 million)

"The Nun" ($2.7 million)

"Crazy Rich Asians" ($2.2 million)

"Hell Fest" ($2.1 million)

"The Predator" ($947,000)--AFP