'Gone Girl' fights off 'Dracula' to win box office

Amid a flurry of new movie challengers, Gone Girl shone through to take the top spot at the box office for the second weekend in a row.

David Fincher's adaptation of Gillian Flynn's novel took in $26.8 million to raise its domestic total to $78.2 million.

It fought off an early challenge from Universal's Dracula Untold, which made a strong debut with $23.5 million and second place, according to studio estimates from tracking service Rentrak.

The high-profile newcomers also included Disney's Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, which opened third with $19.1 million. Robert Downey Jr.'s drama The Judge opened fifth with $13.3 million.

Gone Girl, starring Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike as the ultimate dysfunctional couple, stood atop of them all, thanks to continued strong word of mouth for the early awards contender and a prominent social media campaign. The film has an 87% critical approval rating on survey site RottenTomatoes.com, along with a 91% audience thumb's up.

"This is a thought-provoking film that still has people buzzing," says Paul Dergarabedian, box office analyst for Rentrak. "It's rare for an adult drama that displays this kind of dominance over two weekends."

Dracula Untold, starring Luke Evans in the Dracula origin tale, jumped out to an early weekend lead with $8.9 million from Friday and late Thursday night screenings. This came despite dire warnings about the adaptation from critics, who gave it a 26% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes (audiences gave it 65%).

But Dracula withstood the critical wooden stakes for an impressive opening that could mark the beginning of a new Universal franchise, says Phil Contrino, chief analyst for BoxOffice.com.

Audiences were clearly in the Halloween horror frame of mind as the doll flick Annabelle took fourth place in its second weekend with $16.4 million ($62.2 million total).

Very Bad Day, Disney's version of Judith Viorst's beloved 1972 novel, pulled in the family audience in a solid, if unremarkable, opening. The movie stars 13-year-old Ed Oxenbould as the title character, along with Steve Carell and Jennifer Garner as his screen parents.

"You don't need a movie like this to have an earth-shattering debut," says Contrino. "Very Bad Day will continue to hold up in the upcoming weeks ahead."

The Judge's opening came on the heels of a massive media push by Downey, stepping away from his box office-dominating Marvel Iron Man roles. Downey stars as a slick lawyer who returns to his hometown to defend his disapproving father (Robert Duvall) on murder charges.

Downey worked tirelessly to push this first title from Team Downey, the production company he runs with his wife, Susan.

Final figures are expected Monday.