The Covenant, a tale of supernatural teens trying to destroy one another at an elite boarding school, topped the weekend box office with a modest take of $9 million US, according to studio estimates.

It was Sony Screen Gems' ninth top-opener this year, but its box office take was much less than the studio's The Exorcism of Emily Rose, which reaped more than $30 million in the same weekend a year ago.

"The summer (movie) season ended on a pretty high note, but the fall season is starting off a little slow," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations. "I don't think anyone expected this weekend to set the world on fire in terms of box office."

The Covenant opened in 2,681 theatres, drawing a screen average of $3,357 and knocking off the previous No. 1 movie, Disney's football drama Invincible. The Mark Wahlberg flick dropped to third place with $5.8 million.

While The Covenant ruled among teen moviegoers, older audiences helped Hollywoodland grab the No. 2 spot with its $6 million debut.

The Focus Features drama about the 1959 death of TV's Superman, George Reeves, stars Ben Affleck as Reeves, Diane Lane as his rich mistress and Adrien Brody as a private detective investigating Reeves' death.

It opened in just 1,548 cinemas but posted a per-theatre average of $3,881, highest among the top 10 movies.

The third film to crack the top 10 in its debut this weekend was The Protector, a Weinstein Co. release that landed in the No. 4 spot with $5 million. Crank, Lionsgate's action tale starring Jason Statham as a hit man, dropped from No. 2 to No. 5 with $4.8 million.

Yari Film Group's The Illusionist, a drama set in 1900s Vienna and starring Edward Norton as a mysterious magician, continued to expand in its fourth week in theatres, taking in $4.6 million and the No. 6 spot.

Like Hollywoodland and Fox Searchlight's Little Miss Sunshine, The Illusionist is an example of how films from smaller or independent-minded studios are finding audiences after a summer of blockbusters.

Little Miss Sunshine, starring Greg Kinnear, Toni Collette and Steve Carell, dropped three notches to No. 7 this weekend with $4.4 million. Playing in 1,560 locations, the road-trip comedy averaged $2,837 per theatre.

Meanwhile, moviegoers on Friday pushed the year's biggest hit, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, past the $1 billion box office threshold -- only the third film to do so behind Titanic and Lord of the Rings: Return of the King.

After 10 weeks in theatres, the Johnny Depp sequel has grossed $416.6 million in the U.S. plus $587.5 million internationally.

Following are estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theatres, according to Exhibitor Relations Co. Inc. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. The Covenant, $9 million.
2. Hollywoodland, $6 million.
3. Invincible, $5.8 million.
4. The Protector, $5 million.
5. Crank, $4.8 million.
6. The Illusionist, $4.6 million.
7. Little Miss Sunshine, $4.4 million.
8. The Wicker Man, $4.1 million
9. Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, $3 million.
10. Barnyard: The Original Party Animals, $2.6 million.