The teen horror film "The Covenant" ascended to the No. 1 film of the weekend box office in U.S. and Canadian theaters, taking in 9 million U.S. dollars, according to media reports Monday (Sep 11).

The Covenant follows four young men from the same New England village who possess supernatural powers. Their loyalty to each other is tested when the body of a dead student is discovered at the elite prep school they attend. The film stars Steven Strait and Laura Ramsey.

The Covenant opened in 2,681 theaters, drawing a screen average of 3,357 dollars and knocking off the previous No. 1 movie, Disney's football drama Invincible.

While The Covenant ruled among teen moviegoers, older audiences helped Hollywoodland grab the No. 2 spot with its 6 million dollars debut.

The Covenant was Sony Screen Gems' ninth top-opener this year, but its box office take was much less than the studio's The Exorcism of Emily Rose, which took in more than 30 million dollars in the same weekend a year ago.

Editor: Donald