| Updated:
New cartoon leads box office
A new family cartoon, “Despicable Me”, featuring the voice of Steve Carell, easily took the top spot at the weekend box office in North America yesterday, virtually assuring Universal Pictures of a lucrative franchise with its first foray into 3D animation. The film earned an estimated $60.1m (£40m) across the United States and Canada during the three days beginning Friday, the General Electric unit said, doubling pre-opening forecasts. The film was produced for about $69m.