The disaster film '2012' stormed the weekend box office, opening at No. 1 domestically with $65 million and pulling in $225 million worldwide, studio estimates reveal.

The premise of the movie comes from the ancient Mayan calendar that says that a cataclysmic event will occur on December 21, 2012. The star of the apocalyptic-esque movie, John Cusack, explained the premise of the film further to ET, saying, "I know the Mayan calendar was a great sundial and it was also one of the most intricate time calendars there was, so all those pyramids were…sort of time machines that would tell you exactly on the day or the month or the year…so on that date, it just stops."

Coming in at No. 2 at the box office was 'Disney's A Christmas Carol,' pulling in $22.3 million in it's second weekend. George Clooney's comedy 'The Men Who Stare at Goats' took the No. 3 spot, making $6.2 million.

The highly acclaimed 'Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire' had another successful weekend in the theaters, pulling in $6.1 million. Rounding out the top five was 'Michael Jackson's This Is It,' grossing another $5.1 million.