Melissa McCarthy's 'The Boss' knocks 'Batman v Superman' from the top spot in a box office squeaker

In this weekend's photo-finish box office race, Melissa McCarthy ^[1] showed Batman and Superman who's boss — but just by a nose.

McCarthy's R-rated comedy "The Boss" opened at the top spot with an estimated $23.48 million in the U.S. and Canada, barely edging out the superhero smackdown "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice," which took in $23.45 million in its third weekend, according to tracking firm comScore.

Since breaking out in 2011's "Bridesmaids," McCarthy has proved one of the industry's most bankable comedy stars. Despite largely negative reviews, Universal's "The Boss" — in which the actress plays a business tycoon who tries to rebrand herself after serving time for insider trading — extended her winning streak.

Although "The Boss" opened lower than earlier McCarthy outings such as "Identity Thief" and "Spy," it managed to surpass the $21.6 million debut of 2011's "Tammy," which, like "The Boss," was directed by McCarthy's husband, Ben Falcone.

"Batman v Superman" saw its domestic ticket sales drop 54% from last weekend while bringing its global tally to $783.5 million. The weekend's box office race was so close, it's not inconceivable that the top two films could switch places once final numbers come in Monday morning.

Disney's critically acclaimed animated hit "Zootopia" continued to show impressive legs, dropping just 26% in its sixth weekend to take third place with $14.4 million, bringing its cumulative domestic tally to $296 million.

In fourth place, Universal's romantic comedy sequel "My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2" took in $6.4 million in its third weekend of release, and newcomer "Hardcore Henry," an R-rated first-person action film, rounded out the top five with $5.1 million.

Twitter: @joshrottenberg ^[2]