The ladies of “Ocean’s 8” pulled off a solid debut at the box office.

Warner Bros. and Village Roadshow Pictures’ gender-bending heist film opened to 41.5 million US dollars from 4,145 locations – a series best for the “Ocean’s” franchise. Overseas, it launched with 12.2 million dollars for a global start of 53.7 million.

Women and older moviegoers bolstered box office numbers. Females accounted for 69 percent of audiences, while 69 percent were over the age of 25. “Ocean’s 8” currently has a B+ CinemaScore and 68 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Jeff Goldstein, head of domestic distribution at Warner Bros., thanks counter-programming against a series of tentpoles for the film’s strong debut.

“We exceeded our expectations,” Goldstein said. “There’s always been a lack of movies [female-led projects]. I’m glad audiences enjoyed it as much as we did.”

The spin-off marks over a decade since Steven Soderbergh’s “Ocean’s” trilogy with George Clooney, Brad Pitt, and Matt Damon graced the big screen. “Ocean’s Eleven,” “Ocean’s Twelve,” and “Ocean’s Thirteen,” which released between 2001 and 2007, each bowed between 36 million and 39 million dollars, not adjusted for inflation. Adjusted for inflation, that range climbs to 48 million and 61 million dollars.

“Ocean’s 8” represents a solid return for its star, Sandra Bullock. Her latest on-screen role was in 2015 with “Our Brand Is Crisis,” which bombed with a three-million-dollar opening. The drama grossed only seven million worldwide. Prior to that, Bullock starred in the critically acclaimed “Gravity.” The sci-fi thriller, which landed Bullock an Oscar nom, opened with 55.7 million and went on to make 274 million domestically and 723 million worldwide.

Meanwhile, Toni Collette’s “Hereditary” also got a box office boost. A24’s R-rated thriller didn’t scare audiences away — it exceeded estimates to open in fourth place with 13 million from 2,964 locations. “Hereditary” marks A24’s best opening weekend in history, outpacing 2015’s “The Witch’s” 8.8 million bow.

Ari Aster’s directorial debut has been critically lauded since its debut in the Midnight section at Sundance Film Festival. Audiences appear to disagree – the horror film currently has a D+ CinemaScore and 64 percent audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, while its critical rating is 94 percent Fresh.

Not all weekend openers were as fortunate. “Hotel Artemis” checked in with a dismal 3.1 million on 2,407 screens. Jodie Foster and Sterling K. Brown star in the action thriller set in the near future.

“Hotel Artemis” represents Foster’s first big screen role since 2013’s “Elysium,” which opened with 29.8 million. The sci-fi drama went on to earn 93 million in North America and 286 million worldwide.

“Ocean’s 8” easily nabbed the box office crown. “Solo: A Star Wars Story” secured second place with 15.2 million dollars in its third weekend, bringing its domestic total 176.4 million dollars. Internationally, the Han Solo origin story brought in an additional 11.3 million. The Disney and Lucasfilm movie continues to struggle with a global tally of 312.2 million.

In third is “Deadpool 2” with 13.8 million dollars in its fourth frame. Ryan Reynold’s antihero film has pocketed 278.9 million in North America and 376 million internationally, including an 18 million dollars overseas haul this weekend.

Rounding out the top five is the seventh weekend of “Avengers: Infinity War” with 6.9 million dollars. The Marvel adventure picked up another 10.9 million overseas, bringing its global total to 1.998 billion dollars.