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'Transformers,' 'Ice Age' tie at box office

LOS ANGELES — Prehistoric creatures and robots were in a photo finish for the Fourth of July box-office crown Sunday, with "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" and "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs" tied with $42.5 million each.

Final numbers will sort out which movie actually came in first, Paramount's "Transformers" or 20th Century Fox's "Ice Age." Numbers reported during the weekend are estimates based on the studio's projections for how much business the movies would do on Sunday.

Universal's crime saga "Public Enemies," starring Johnny Depp and Christian Bale, debuted a solid No. 3 with $26.2 million.

With a $293.5 million domestic total after just 12 days, "Transformers" shot past Disney and Pixar Animation's "Up" to become the year's highest-grossing movie. The sequel reunites human stars Shia LaBeouf and Megan Fox with shape-shifting robots in a war against evil machines.

"Ice Age," the third installment in the cartoon franchise, brings back voice stars Ray Romano, Denis Leary, John Leguizamo and Queen Latifah as the gang of extinct animals encounter a lost world of dinosaurs underground.

"Public Enemies," starring Depp as 1930s gangster John Dillinger and Bale as FBI man Melvin Purvis, pulled in an audience of older adults who often do not pack theaters for summer's action tales, family flicks and comedies.

"Up" reached a milestone of its own, its $6.6 million weekend lifting its domestic haul to $264.9 million, passing "The Incredibles" ($261.4 million) to become No. 2 on the Disney-Pixar hit list behind "Finding Nemo" ($339.7 million).

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Hollywood.com.

1 (tie). "Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs," $42.5 million.

1 (tie). "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen," $42.5 million.

3. "Public Enemies," $26.2 million.

4. "The Proposal," $12.8 million.

5. "The Hangover," $10.4 million.

6. "Up," $6.6 million.

7. "My Sister's Keeper," $5.3 million.

8. "The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3," $2.5 million.

9 (tie). "Year One," $2.1 million.

9. (tie). "Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian," $2.1 million.

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