Disney scored the biggest opening for an animated film debuting nationwide in December.

Disney’s “The Princess and the Frog” leapfrogged over the competish to top the domestic box office, grossing an estimated $25 million from 3,434 theaters in a solid start for the traditionally animated pic.

Opening in a handful of market overseas, “Princess” grossed $7 million for a worldwide total of $32 million.

Warner Bros. took the Nos. 2 and 3 spots domestically with holdover “The Blind Side” and new entry “Invictus,” respectively.

“Invictus,” the latest from Clint Eastwood, grossed an estimated $9.1 million from 2,125 runs, drawing a largely older adult aud. Drama, co-financed by Spyglass Entertainment, saw a slightly more modest bow than Eastwood’s other recent films, but box office observers are taking a wait-and-see attitude before judging the pic’s prospects.

On the specialty side, Paramount and DreamWorks’ “The Lovely Bones,” directed by Peter Jackson, posted the best location average of the sesh — $38,666 — as it opened in three locations in New York and L.A., grossing an estimated $116,000.

Also debuting was the Weinstein Co.’s “A Single Man,” which pulled in an estimated $216,328 from nine theaters in its debut, giving it a per-location average of $24,306. The film marks Tom Ford’s directorial debut.

Paramount’s George Clooney starrer “Up in the Air” continued to impress in its second frame as it expanded to 72 locations, grossing an estimated $2.5 million for a per-location average of $34,722 and cume of $4.1 million. (Film expands nationwide on Christmas Day.)

Pics bowing over the weekend are jockeying for position in the Christmas season, a crowded time for commercial tentpoles and dramas vying for adult eyeballs — and awards attention. The week between Christmas and New Year’s can generate enormous business for all sorts of fare.

For specialty films, the name of the game right now is to be on the list of Golden Globe nominations to be announced Tuesday. This year, prestige pics could find themselves competing for awards attention with a number of more commercial releases, including “Invictus,” “Blind Side” and “Avatar.”

Overall, the domestic B.O. was up 10% over the same frame a year ago. The film biz is now less than $400 million away from jumping the $10 billion line in domestic ticket sales in a single year for the first time ever.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theatres, according to Hollywood.com. Final figures will be released Monday.

1. “The Princess and the Frog,” $25 million.

2. “The Blind Side,” $15.5 million.

3. “Invictus,” $9.1 million.

4. “The Twilight Saga: New Moon,” $8 million.

5. “Disney’s a Christmas Carol,” $6.9 million.

6. “Brothers,” $5 million.

7. “2012,” $4.4 million.

8. “Old Dogs,” $4.39 million.

9. “Armored,” $3.5 million.

10. “Ninja Assassin,” $2.7 million.

[Credit: Variety / Hollywood.com]