The Dark Knight Rises has debuted at the top of the UK box office on its first weekend on release.
Christopher Nolan’s final Batman instalment pulls in £14.6 million to easily secure the number one spot ahead of Ice Age 4: Continental Drift and The Amazing Spider-Man.
The Dark Knight Rises‘s three-day total, from Friday through Sunday, is the highest of the year so far. It narrowly misses out on the biggest opening weekend of 2012 to The Avengers, whose £15.78 million total was aided by £2.55 million in previews.
The Batman trilogy closer’s opening haul outpaces the £4.43 million earned by The Dark Knight in 2008 and the £4.43 million taken home by 2005’s Batman Begins.
Elsewhere, the UK top ten sees Magic Mike and The Five-Year Engagement at numbers four and five, while Bollywood release Cocktail is at six.
Seeking a Friend for the End of the World experiences the sharpest fall as it loses 83% in ticket sales on its second weekend in cinemas.
The UK box office top ten in full:
1. (-) The Dark Knight Rises – £14,362,443
2. (1) Ice Age 4: Continental Drift – £2,112,021
3. (2) The Amazing Spider-Man – £1,051,641
4. (3) Magic Mike – £885,330
5. (6) The Five-Year Engagement – £77,158
6. (5) Cocktail – £70,212
7. (4) Seeking a Friend for the End of the World – £59,788
8. (7) Men in Black 3 – £55,680
9. (8) Prometheus – £39,075
10. (9) Katy Perry: Part of Me – £38,327
Source: Rentrak