‘Treasure’ finds more box-office gold

? Nicolas Cage followed his secret treasure map to another fortune at movie theaters.

Cage’s “National Treasure: Book of Secrets,” the Disney sequel to its 2004 hit, opened as the weekend’s No. 1 movie with $45.5 million as Hollywood continued a holiday spree at the box office, according to studio estimates Sunday.

With Cage reprising his role as a history buff on the hunt for a vanished fortune, the “National Treasure” sequel outdid the original, which debuted with $35.1 million on its way to a $173 million total.

The previous weekend’s top flick, Will Smith’s “I Am Legend,” slipped to second place with $34.2 million, the Warner Bros. hit raising its 10-day total to $137.5 million.

The two action films led a crowded market filled with new releases, among them Universal’s foreign-policy satire “Charlie Wilson’s War,” starring Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts and Philip Seymour Hoffman. Directed by Mike Nichols, “Charlie Wilson’s War” debuted at No. 4 with $9.6 million.

Playing in just 1,249 theaters, about half as many as “Charlie Wilson’s War,” the DreamWorks-Paramount musical “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street” did almost as much business, coming in at No. 5 with $9.35 million.

The latest from the Judd Apatow comedy machine, Sony’s “Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story,” was a surprise bomb, taking in just $4.1 million despite good reviews praising its no-holds-barred humor and John C. Reilly’s giddy performance.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC. Final figures will be released Wednesday.

1. “National Treasure: Book of Secrets,” $45.5 million.

2. “I Am Legend,” $34.2 million.

3. “Alvin and the Chipmunks,” $29 million.

4. “Charlie Wilson’s War,” $9.6 million.

5. “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street,” $9.35 million.

6. “P.S. I Love You,” $6.5 million.

7. “Enchanted,” $4.15 million.

8. “Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story,” $4.1 million.

9. “The Golden Compass,” $4 million.

10. “Juno,” $3.4 million.