'Toy Story 3' Tops Summer Box Office

(NewsCore) - It's Buzz Lightyear to the rescue -- again. Disney's "Toy Story 3" was the top performer at the U.S. box office this summer, grossing a record $405 million and lifting box office takings after a summer that was light on hits, the New York post reported Monday.

Last summer, 14 movies took in more than $100 million, while this year there were only 11.

Movie attendance from the first weekend of May through to Labor Day also fell to its lowest level since 1997. The number of tickets sold is expected to drop 2.6 percent, to 552 million tickets.

Studio executives cited one explanation for the lower ticket sales: the summer started a week later this year, on May 7 rather than May 1.

Still, soaring ticket prices for 3D films such as "Toy Story" propped up revenue.

The overall box office take for North America is estimated to hit $4.35 billion, a 2.4 percent rise, after the Labor Day holiday weekend, according to Hollywood.com.

The average ticket price rose an estimated 5.1 percent to $7.88, largely because of the $3 or so 3D premium.

"I think 3D is a huge complement to our industry and it's here to stay in a big way, but I don't think that means 2D is antiquated," said Rory Bruer, Sony's president of distribution.

Surprise hits included Warner Bros.' Leo DiCaprio spy drama "Inception," Sony's "Karate Kid" and Universal's "Despicable Me."

Some of the most buzzed-about losers proved that star power doesn't always sell. Cases in point: Lionsgate's "Killers," starring Ashton Kutcher, and Twentieth Century Fox's "Knight and Day," with Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz.

Read more: New York Post