LOS ANGELES — “Minions” took over the box office this weekend, launching with an estimated $115.2 million in the U.S. and Canada.

Overseas, the film collected $280.5 million, for a global total that neared $400 million. It opened at No. 1 in 54 of its 56 international markets.

The film surpassed even the highest industry tracking estimates of $110 million, delivering the second-highest opening for an animated film in North America, behind only the $121.6 million debut for “Shrek the Third” in 2007. “Minions” finished ahead of the $110.3 million opening for “Toy Story 3” in 2010, though when adjusted for inflation, the latter retains its No. 2 ranking.

“Minions,” which features the voice of Sandra Bullock as supervillain Scarlet Overkill and co-stars Jon Hamm, Michael Keaton, Allison Janney and Steve Coogan, was produced by Universal and Illumination Entertainment for $74 million.

“The minions are fun and the whole family enjoys them,” said Nicholas Carpou, Universal’s head of domestic distribution.

In 2010, “Minions” precursor “Despicable Me” launched with a surprisingly strong $56.4 million and went on to collect $251.5 million in the U.S. and Canada and $543 million globally. The sequel, which opened over the five-day Fourth of July holiday in 2013, made $368 million domestically and $970.7 million worldwide.

Buzz for “Minions” has been building. It ranked as movie-ticketing website Fandango’s top pre-seller among animated films to date.