Friday Box Office: Holmes For Christmas

There really was something elementary about uncoiling Robert Downey Jr.'s sly, sinewy Sherlock Holmes on Christmas Day, when nearly $25 million worth of holiday moviegoers flocked to the star's action-comedy riff on the famous sleuth. Avatar was not far behind, continuing its own robust run with an estimated $23.5 million. Off in fourth place behind Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakuel was Nancy Meyers's It's Complicated, ably overriding its R-rating with a solid $7.1 million. Let it suffice to say these gifts fit Hollywood fine, and no returns will be necessary. Read on for the full top 10.

SHERLOCK HOLMES: $24.9 million (new)

AVATAR: $23.5 million ($160.8 million)

ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS: THE SQUEAKUEL: $14.5 million ($41.4 million)

IT'S COMPLICATED: $7.1 million (new)

UP IN THE AIR: $3.7 million ($16.4 million)

THE BLIND SIDE: $3.3 million ($176.2 million)

THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG: $2.1 million ($56.9 million)

NINE: $2 million ($2.4 million)

DID YOU HEAR ABOUT THE MORGANS?: $1.5 million ($12.4 million)

INVICTUS: $1.3 million ($20.3 million)