LOS ANGELES, California (Reuters) -- The "X-Men" mutants overpowered the human competition at the U.S. Memorial Day holiday box office in North America, as the final film in the comic-book trilogy logged the fourth-biggest opening of all time, according to studio estimates on Monday.

"X-Men: The Last Stand" earned $120.1 million in the four days since opening on May 26, distributor 20th Century Fox said on Monday, and set new records as the biggest Memorial Day holiday opener ever and the biggest debut so far this year.

"The Da Vinci Code" previously held the honors for the best opening of the year after launching last weekend to $77 million. It slipped to No. 2 with a four-day sum of $43 million and a total of $145.5 million, but remained the top film internationally. "Over the Hedge" was No. 3 in North America with $35.3 million, also down one spot. Its two-week total rose to $84.4 million.

"I think this puts to bed the notion that people don't want to go to movies anymore," Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Exhibitor Relations, told The Associated Press. "The combination of 'Da Vinci Code' and 'X-Men' proves that people really love to go to the movies, especially in the summer."

Though, perhaps, not every movie.

While the "X-Men" franchise is on fire, Tom Cruise's "Mission: Impossible" series is on the ropes. "Mission: Impossible III" has grossed $115.8 million after four weekends. At the same stage in their cycles, 1996's "Mission: Impossible" had earned about $145 million, and 2000's "Mission: Impossible 2" $177 million.