Ben Stiller stars as Larry Daley in the hilarious 'Night at the Museum'.

LOS ANGELES, (Reuters):

Ben Stiller led the North American box office for a third weekend with the family comedy Night at the Museum, while the sci-fi thriller Children of Men surged to No. 3 in its first weekend of national release.

Three new movies entered the fray, led by the Hilary Swank drama Freedom Writers at No. 4. The cartoon Happily N'Ever After arrived at No. 6, and the Cedric the Entertainer comedy Code Name: The Cleaner left little trace at No. 11.

According to studio estimates issued on Sunday, Night at the Museum earned $24.0 million during the three days beginning Jan. 5. After 17 days, the film has earned $164.1 million. Stiller plays a security guard at a natural history museum whose exhibits come to life at night. The film was released by News Corp.'s 20th Century Fox.