(Photo: Courtesy Dreamworks)

Well, nobody saw this coming. Eddie Murphy's highly-anticipated comeback to adult comedy couldn't stop a swashbuckling cat from taking the #1 spot at the box office this weekend. Puss in Boots earned a very surprising $34 million in its second week in theaters, while Tower Heist came in a far second with $24.6 million, Deadline reports. 

Another disappointment for studio executives: A Very Harold and Kumar 3D Christmas, which brought in only $14.5 million — less than what the two-dimensional Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay earning on its opening weekend.

Next week, all three films will face off against a coming wave of adult dramas, including Clint Eastwood's J. Edgar, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, and Immortals, with Mickey Rourke and Freida Pinto.