Lawrence.com

Los Angeles — The family that spies together took charge at movie theaters during the weekend and buried the competition.

"Spy Kids," a family film about a sister and brother who embark on a mission to rescue their secret-agent parents, opened as the top box-office draw with $27 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Ashley Judd's romantic comedy "Someone Like You" debuted in second place with $10.3 million. The weekend's other big new release, the gross-out comedy "Tomcats," managed No. 4 with $6.5 million.

The overall box office was up, with the top 12 films taking in $84.6 million, an 11.5 percent increase from the same weekend last year.

"Spy Kids" already has resulted in a new film franchise for distributor Miramax, which had decided to do a sequel long before the film opened.

Miramax co-founder Bob Weinstein said the company hopes to have the sequel in theaters for summer 2002, though it could be delayed by potential strikes by Hollywood actors and writers.

"There's not a lot of live-action family films, but when there are, they do very well," Weinstein said.

Written and directed by Robert Rodriguez, "Spy Kids" stars Antonio Banderas and Carla Gugino as semiretired spies whose children (Alexa Vega and Daryl Sabara) go to their aid when the parents are abducted.

"It's James Bond for kids. They sort of reinvented a genre and made a huge hit out of it," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

Another spy flick, "The Tailor of Panama," did well in limited release, opening in 199 theaters and taking in $2 million for a healthy average of $10,050 a cinema.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at North American theaters, according to Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc. Final figures are to be released Monday.

1. "Spy Kids," $27 million.

2. "Someone Like You," $10.3 million.

3. "Heartbreakers," $8.2 million.

4. "Tomcats," $6.5 million.

5. "The Brothers," $5.8 million.

6. "Enemy at the Gates," $5.3 million.

7. "Exit Wounds," $5.2 million.

8. "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," $5 million.

9. "Traffic," $4.2 million.

10. "The Mexican," $2.6 million.