Los Angeles ? Adam Sandler took charge of the remote control at the weekend box office.

His comic fantasy “Click,” about a man whose new universal remote takes control of his life and leaves it in chaos, debuted as the No. 1 movie with $40 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.

Sony’s “Click” bumped off the Disney-Pixar animated comedy “Cars,” which slipped to second place with $22.5 million, raising its domestic total to $155.9 million.

The weekend’s other new wide release – Focus Features’ “Waist Deep,” starring Tyrese Gibson as an ex-con forced into a robbery spree to collect ransom for his kidnapped son – opened strongly with $9.5 million to finish at No. 4.

“Click” finished in the ballpark of the opening weekends for Sandler’s other recent comedies, “Mr. Deeds,” “Anger Management,” “50 First Dates” and “The Longest Yard,” whose debuts ranged from $37 million to $47 million.

Sandler plays a harried architect and family man who receives a magical remote that can fast-forward and freeze-frame his life. The movie co-stars Kate Beckinsale, Christopher Walken and David Hasselhoff.

“Sandler’s one of the most bankable stars in Hollywood,” said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations. “Adam Sandler has this timeless appeal to audiences. He’s like a big kid, and people love that about him.”

The overall box office rose for the sixth straight weekend. Hollywood revenues are at $4.35 billion for the year, up 4.5 percent from the box office in 2005, when the movie industry was in a prolonged slump.

The box office is expected to get a boost over the Fourth of July weekend with Wednesday’s premiere of the Warner Bros. tale “Superman Returns.”

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters:

1. “Click,” $40 million.

2. “Cars,” $22.5 million.

3. “Nacho Libre,” $12.1 million.

4. “Waist Deep,” $9.5 million.

5. “The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift,” $9.2 million.

6. “The Lake House,” $8.3 million.

7. “The Break-Up,” $6.1 million.

8. “Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties,” $4.75 million.

9. “X-Men: The Last Stand,” $4.4 million.

10. “The Da Vinci Code,” $4 million.