Only one major new release entered theatres this weekend, no doubt to leave room for a certain Dark Knight’s rise next Friday. Ice Age: Continental Drift opened in 3,880 locations (70% in 3D) on Friday and earned an estimated $16.5 million. Considering that Continental Drift is the fourth entry in Fox’s ten year-old Ice Age franchise, that’s a solid opening that promises to build to approximately $45 million by Sunday. That would be higher than the studio’s initial projection for Ice Age 4 and higher than their previous installment, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, managed back in 2009. That third feature (the first to feature 3D) went on to make just under $200 million in the US and a record-breaking $690 million on its international run. So far, Ice Age 4 has also been burning up the foreign charts, grossing a reported $238 million internationally in the past two weeks. We’ll have more details and analysis tomorrow.