Los Angeles ? The undead of “Resident Evil” still have plenty of life in them.

“Resident Evil: Extinction,” with Milla Jovovich again fighting flesh-hungry zombies in the third installment based on the video game, opened as the No. 1 weekend flick with $24 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

It was the best debut for the franchise, topping the $23 million debut of part two, 2004’s “Resident Evil: Apocalypse.”

Sony Screen Gems hinted there could be more “Resident Evil” movies, though the latest had been billed as the final one.

“Until the next,” joked Rory Bruer, Sony’s head of distribution. “It absolutely would not surprise me considering the success of the franchise that they find a way to come up with another. It’s a real possibility.”

The previous weekend’s top movie, the Warner Bros. drama “The Brave One,” fell to No. 3 with $7.4 million.

Brad Pitt’s “The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford” and Sean Penn’s “Into the Wild” each opened strongly in limited release.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC.

Final figures will be released today.

1. “Resident Evil: Extinction,” $24 million.

2. “Good Luck Chuck,” $14 million.

3. “The Brave One,” $7.4 million.

4. “3:10 to Yuma,” $6.35 million.

5. “Eastern Promises,” $5.7 million.

6. “Sydney White,” $5.3 million.

7. “Mr. Woodcock,” $5 million.

8. “Superbad,” $3.1 million.

9. “The Bourne Ultimatum,” $2.8 million.

10. “Dragon Wars,” $2.5 million.