Horton hears ‘cha-ching’

Twentieth Century Fox’s “Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears a Who!” rang up a who-latious $45.1 million at the domestic box office — the biggest opening so far in 2008 — furthering Fox’s successful foray into the animated and family market.

“Horton,” toplining the voices of Jim Carrey and Steve Carell, also drew the fifth-best debut of all time for a G-rated toon — a category dominated by Disney/Pixar — and gave Carrey his best opening in nearly five years. Animated feature scored the fourth-best March bow ever after “300″ and Fox’s PG toons “Ice Age” and sequel “Ice Age: The Meltdown.“

Here’s the complete weekend box office report:

1 Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears a Who $45,100,000
2 10,000 B.C. $16,415,000
3 Never Back Down $8,610,000
4 College Road Trip $7,893,000
5 Vantage Point $5,400,000
6 The Bank Job $4,910,000
7 Doomsday $4,743,000
8 Semi-Pro $3,000,000
9 The Other Boleyn Girl $2,900,000
10 The Spiderwick Chronicles $2,390,000