Superman flies to top of US box office

Cavill is the first British actor to play Superman on the big screen

Superman movie Man of Steel has soared to the top of the North American box office, making $113m (£71.9m) in its opening weekend, early estimates have suggested.

The film stars British actor Henry Cavill as the superhero alongside Amy Adams as news reporter, Lois Lane.

"They finally got the Superman formula right," said box office analyst for Hollywood.com, Paul Dergarabedian.

"Superhero movies really are the bread and butter of the summer box office."

Man of Steel scored the biggest opening for June, beating the previous record held by Toy Story 3, which made $110.3 million when it opened in 2010.

The comedy This Is the End debuted in second place.

It stars Seth Rogen, James Franco and Jonah Hill as versions of themselves trapped in a mansion during the apocalypse.

It opened on Wednesday and has earned $32.8m (£20.8m) so far, having only cost $32m (£20.3m) to make.

About $20m of the box office receipts came over the weekend.

"To have this amount of money in the bank with its cost of production, good reviews and word of mouth really puts our feet on solid ground," said Rory Bruer, Sony's president of worldwide distribution.

Man of Steel will be up against some stiff competition next week when Brad Pitt zombie thriller World War Z and the Disney-Pixar's prequel Monsters University are released.