OWEN WILSON - MARLEY AND ME TOPS CHRISTMAS CHARTS

MARLEY AND ME TOPS CHRISTMAS CHARTS

Marley and Me has topped the Christmas chart in the US box office, according to reports.

The family film, starring Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston as the owners of a chaos-causing Labrador, has earned $14 million (£10.2 million) since Friday, according to Variety.

Marley and Me beat The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – starring Aniston's ex husband Brad Pitt - to the number one spot on Christmas day.

Benjamin Button grossed around $10.2 million (£7 billion), the trade magazine claimed.

Disney's Bedtime Stories was in third place, according to early reports, while Tom Cruise's Nazi drama Valkyrie charted in fourth.

'Marley' had not been expected to beat Bedtime Stories, starring Adam Sandler, but studio 20th Century Fox said the film had succeeded in appealing to both families and general audiences, along with females of all ages, Variety reported.