This weekend saw George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, Joaquin Phoenix and Cate Blanchett all fighting for your box office dollars—so who would have thought Tyler Perry would come out the big winner?

Even though two of his last three films opened with impressive numbers, very few predicted the writer/actor/producer/director would topple the competition.  Now the number crunchers know better.  Though the debut underperformed 2005’s Diary of a Mad Black Woman ($21.9 million) and 2006’s Madea’s Family Reunion ($30 million), Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married? still scored $10 million more than its nearest competitor.

Additionally surprising was the lasting success of Disney’s The Game Plan.  The film finally dropped one notch to #2 in its third week—also beating out We Own The Night and Michael Clayton.  Although kid-friendly fare is rarity these days, the movie’s ability to remain so strong is quite impressive.

Here’s how the rest of the Top Ten panned out:

1. Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married?, Lionsgate, $21,353,789
2. The Game Plan, Disney, $11,037,505
3. We Own The Night, Sony, $10,826,287
4. Michael Clayton, Warner Bros., $10,373,422
5. The Heartbreak Kid, Paramount, $7,280,450
6. Elizabeth: The Golden Age, Universal, $6,153,075
7. The Kingdom, Universal, $4,608,025
8. Across the Universe, Revolution Studios, $3,824,988
9. Resident Evil: Extinction, Sony, $2,646,261
10. The Seeker, Fox, $2,212,955