She may have been overlooked by the Academy, but director Kathryn Bigelow has been avenged at the box office. Zero Dark Thirty, the “controversial” CIA thriller that has been enjoying incredible success in limited release, is now a success on a much wider scale. The Best Picture nominee took first place on Friday with an estimated $9 million from 2,937 runs. With its three-day take expected to top $25 million, Zero Dark Thirty will remain on top through Sunday, giving Bigelow the first number one hit of her career. Once the presumptive pick for the top spot, Warner Brothers’ Gangster Squad had to settle for third on Friday. The R-rated crime drama, which has had its own share of controversy following the events in Aurora and Newtown, earned an estimated $6.6 million from 3,103 locations - just under the $6.7 million estimate of the new R-rated comedy A Haunted House. With Django Unchained in fourth, it looks like the four highest-grossing domestic films will all carry an R-rating this weekend – the equivalent of a solar eclipse in box office parlance. We’ll have full details tomorrow.