It took three weeks, but Argo finally found its way to the top of the box office.
The Warner Bros. thriller from director and star Ben Affleck, inspired by the real-life rescue of six U.S. embassy workers during the 1979 Iranian hostage crisis, made nearly $12.4 million this weekend, according to studio estimates.
Argo had been in second place the past two weeks and has now made about $60.8 million total.
Debuting at No. 3 was the sprawling, star-studded Cloud Atlas, which made a disappointing $9.4 million. The nearly three-hour drama was co-directed by siblings Lana and Andy Wachowski and Tom Tyk-wer and features an ensemble cast including Tom Hanks and Halle Berry.
Hotel Transylvania was third with $9.5 million.
