Entertainment

"21 Jump Street" opens at No. 1 at the box office

March 19, 2012 / 9:13 AM EDT / CBS/AP

Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum in a scene from "21 Jump Street." Columbia Pictures

(CBS/AP) Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum's "21 Jump Street" topped this weekend's box office, opening as the No. 1 film with $35 million.

Based on the 1980s TV show that made Johnny Depp a star, "21 Jump Street" casts Hill and Tatum as rookie cops posing as teens to root out crooks peddling a psychedelic new drug at a Los Angeles school.

The Sony action comedy took down the animated hit "Dr. Seuss' the Lorax," which had been the top movie the previous two weekends.

Stuido estimates Sunday put Universal's "The Lorax" in second-place with $22.8 million, raising its domestic total to $158.4 million.

At No. 3, Disney's costly sci-fi dud "John Carter" dropped sharply in its second weekend. The Edgar Rice Burroughs adaptation took in $13.5 million, down 55 percent from its opening weekend and lifting its domestic total to a measly $53.2 million. "John Carter" reportedly cost $250 million to make.

In narrow release, Will Ferrell's Spanish-language B-movie spoof "Casa de mi Padre" opened solidly at No. 9 with $2.2 million. The Lionsgate release played in just 382 theaters, compared to 3,121 for "21 Jump Street."