J. Lo + J. Fo = big box office dough

With the help of Jennifer Lopez, Jane Fonda made a triumphant return to the big screen this weekend, as their comedy Monster-in-Law topped the box office chart with $24 million, according to studio estimates.

Fans eager for a comedic experience along the lines of Meet the Fockers boosted Monster‘s tally, which nonetheless fell far short of the $46.1 million Fockers earned in its first weekend late last year.

Not too far behind in second place was Will Ferrell’s soccer-dad comedy Kicking and Screaming, which premiered with a decent $20.9 million. Ferrell will be back in multiplexes later this summer with his remake of Bewitched, with Nicole Kidman.

Another new release, the Jet Li thriller Unleashed, managed a $10.6 million debut for third place, followed by the epic Kingdom of Heaven, which followed up its disappointing opening with a 51 percent drop to $9.6 million. But the news was better for the well-received ensemble drama Crash, which slipped only 21 percent to $7.2 million.

The flop of the weekend was certainly Mindhunters, the long-delayed thriller starring Christian Slater. Opening in more than 1,000 theaters, it grossed just $2 million, good enough only for 10th place.