"The Avengers," the smash hit movie about Marvel superheroes who team up to save the Earth, crushed competitors for a second weekend with a record 103 million U.S. dollars in U.S. and Canadian ticket sales and was poised to top 1 billion worldwide, studio estimates showed on Sunday (May 13). After posting the highest domestic box office debut in history last weekend, "Avengers" set another record by easily topping the 75.6 million "Avatar" pulled in during its second weekend in 2009, making "Avengers" the first movie to exceed 100 million in its second weekend. 　　"Avengers" has now racked up a staggering 629 million internationally since opening overseas on April 25, distributor Walt Disney Co said, positioning it to break the 1 billion threshold after just 19 days. The big-budget 3D flick - the first of Hollywood's lucrative summer season - unites Iron Man, Black Widow, Captain America and other Marvel comic book heroes in a fight against a villain determined to destroy the planet. 　　Disney announced this week it is planning an "Avengers" sequel. "Avengers" mania overwhelmed new horror comedy "Dark Shadows," according to studio estimates compiled by Reuters. "Dark Shadows" pulled in an estimated 28.8 million from Friday through Sunday at domestic theaters. 　　The latest collaboration between actor Johnny Depp and director Tim Burton, "Dark Shadows" is based on a TV soap opera that ran from 1966 to 1971 about vampires, werewolves and witches who live in a ghostly manor house in the countryside. In the film, Depp plays a vampire who returns to his ancestral home to help protect his dysfunctional descendants. 　　Michelle Pfeiffer and Helena Bonham Carter also star. In third place, romantic comedy "Think Like a Man" grossed 6.3 million during its fourth weekend in theaters. (John Russell/ Reuters)