British audiences proved this past weekend that they have an appetite for serious films, putting three of the year's top awards contenders in the first three spots on the box office chart. New entry The Wolf of Wall Street won the weekend with an impressive £4.7m, a gigantic result considering that the film is three hours long and has an 18 certificate. It's also by far the biggest UK opening for a Martin Scorsese movie. Read our review of Wolf of Wall Street here.

The Wolf of Wall StreetJonah Hill [L] and Leonardo Dicaprio [R] in 'The Wolf of Wall Street'

The film pushed 12 Years a Slave and American Hustle into second and third places, but both show no sign of dropping off soon. And the awards boost continues with the return of Gravity to the chart, back in 10th place due to a re-release in cinemas (the DVD is still six weeks off).

Across the Atlantic, American audiences showed their interest in more mainstream fare, as the comedy Ride Along starring Kevin Hart and Ice Cube topped the chart, knocking Mark Wahlberg's Navy Seal action movie Lone Survivor into second. Animated romp The Nut Job took third place, leaving the franchise reboot Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit struggling in fourth. The awards-season films American Hustle, August: Osage County and The Wolf of Wall Street are hanging in there at 6th, 8th and 9th places, respectively.

Watch the trailer for The Wolf of Wall Street:

August: Osage County leads this week's box office challengers in the UK, along with Jack Ryan and the Stallone/DeNiro boxing flick Grudge Match. In America the big title is I, Frankenstein, starring Aaron Eckhart. That one opens in Britain next week.