During its second weekend, the Batman movie "The Dark Knight Rises" made $64.1 million in the U.S. and Canada, surpassing other films at the box office despite facing competition from the Olympics on television and the aftermath of the Colorado shooting. The movie, which is the final installment in director Christopher Nolan's Batman series starring Christian Bale, also earned $122.1 million from international markets, bringing its total overseas earnings to $248.2 million since its release on July 20th. When combined with its domestic ticket sales of $289 million, the film has now grossed a total of $537 million worldwide. Despite a 60 percent drop in sales from its opening weekend, the movie still outperformed its predecessor "The Dark Knight" and other recent superhero films. This year, "The Avengers" saw a 50 percent decrease in sales during the weekend after its May opening, while "The Amazing Spider-Man" dropped 44 percent following its June release. Despite being one of the highest-grossing movies of the year, "Dark Knight Rises" did not meet pre-release sales expectations due to the tragic killing of 12 moviegoers in Aurora, Colorado. Sales for "Dark Knight Rises" in North America were behind its predecessor, "Dark Knight," which made $313.8 million in its first two weekends. The impact of the Olympics and the shooting in Aurora likely contributed to lower turnout for the Batman film and other movies, according to industry watchers. Warner Bros. officials declined to comment on the box office numbers and their connection to the shooting for the second week in a row. President of Hollywood.com Box Office, Paul Dergarabedian, noted that the combination of the shooting and the start of the London Olympics had a negative effect on moviegoer attendance. "The Olympics has been receiving a lot of attention in the media recently, possibly causing many people to stay home on Friday night, in addition to the Aurora shooting." He pointed out that the mediocre reviews for the new movies released this weekend likely contributed to low theater attendance, but he expects a rebound next weekend. Dergarabedian mentioned that with more time passing since the Aurora shooting, the Olympics becoming more routine, and exciting new films being released, he anticipates a resurgence in attendance. Some of the upcoming films he mentioned were "Total Recall" and "Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days." Overall, domestic ticket sales for the weekend were down 25 percent compared to the same weekend last year, according to Hollywood.com Box Office. The second spot at the box office was taken by the animated children's movie "Ice Age: Continental Drift," which earned $13.3 million. It outperformed the comedy "The Watch" and the dance movie "Step Up Revolution," both of which also premiered in theaters this weekend. "The Watch" secured third place with a domestic earnings of $13 million. The film features Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, and Jonah Hill as men who form a neighborhood watch group to fight off aliens. Despite its star-studded cast, the movie received mostly negative reviews, with only 14 percent of critics praising it on the website Rotten Tomatoes. The film "The Watch" was also impacted by real-life events. In response to the fatal shooting of Trayvon Martin by a Neighbourhood Watch volunteer, 20th Century Fox changed the movie's title from "Neighbourhood Watch." Before its release weekend, Fox anticipated the $68 million production would earn between $13 million and $15 million. Chris Aronson, executive vice president for domestic distribution at Fox, commented on the uncertainty of the box office climate following the shooting, calling it a "wild-card weekend." Aronson expressed optimism for a recovery in the general market, believing it would be advantageous for all movies. "Step Up Revolution" earned $11.8 million domestically, placing fourth. The film, which follows a group of flash-mob dancers in Miami, is the fourth installment in a series that has made over $400 million worldwide. The distributor had anticipated an opening in the low- to mid-teens. The comedy "Ted" came in fifth with $7.4 million. The movie "Step Up Revolution" was distributed by a branch of Lions Gate Entertainment. "The Watch" and "Ice Age" were distributed by 20th Century Fox, a division of News Corp. Sony Corp's film division released "Spider-Man."