LOS ANGELES - Audiences feasted on zombies as the fright flick "Dawn of the Dead" ruled the box office, debuting with $27.3 million and bumping "The Passion of the Christ" from the top spot.

Mel Gibson's "The Passion" took in $19.2 million, slipping to second place after three straight weekends on top, according to studio estimates Sunday.

"The Passion" raised its domestic total to $295.3 million since opening Feb. 25. The movie passed "The Sixth Sense," which earned $293.5 million, to take over 18th place on the all-time domestic chart.

Opening in third place with $11.4 million was the serial-killer thriller "Taking Lives," starring Angelina Jolie and Ethan Hawke in a tale of an FBI profiler tracking a murderer who assumes victims' identities.

In narrower release, Jim Carrey's "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" premiered at No. 6 with $8.6 million. Carrey plays a man reliving recollections of a soured romance after he hires a company to erase his memories of his lover, played by Kate Winslet.

1. "Dawn of the Dead," $27.3 million.

2. "The Passion of the Christ," $19.2 million.

3. "Taking Lives," $11.4 million.

4. "Starsky & Hutch," $10.7 million.

5. "Secret Window," $9.6 million.

6. "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," $8.6 million.

7. "Hidalgo," $8.5 million.

8. "Agent Cody Banks: Destination London," $6 million.

9. "50 First Dates," $4.3 million.

10. "Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen," $1.5 million.