'Transformers' Are Still the Boss: Box Office Report July 8-10

Sorry, 'Zookeeper,' but moviegoers this weekend preferred talking robots to talking animals. And sorry, too, 'Horrible Bosses,' but no one's as horrible a boss as Megatron.

'Transformers: Dark of the Moon' ruled the box office for a second straight weekend, earning another estimated $47.0 million and defeating both wide-release newcomers. After just 13 days of release, 'Transformers' has surpassed 'The Hangover Part II' to become the top-grossing movie of 2011 so far, with a total take of $261.0 million.

The robot sequel's steep drop of 52 percent from last week was expected; that's typical for these big genre franchise summer spectacles, which tend to fizzle fast after making a big splash on their opening weekends. The decline might have been steeper, but 'Transformers' has earned unexpectedly strong word-of-mouth and generous reviews.