NEW YORK (Bloomberg) — "Marley & Me," News Corporation's tale of a mischievous dog, led box-office sales for a second week, taking in $24.1 million as Hollywood studios refrained from releasing new movies over the post-New Year's weekend.

Walt Disney Co.'s "Bedtime Stories" held on to second place with $20.3 million, and award contender "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button," from Viacom Inc.'s Paramount, remained in third place with $18.4 million, box-office tracker Media By Numbers LLC said in a statement.

The lull in openings left room for possible Academy Award candidates "The Reader" and "Revolutionary Road" to expand into more theatres. "The Reader," the Weinstein Co. drama starring Kate Winslet, took in $1.62 million after more than doubling its presence to 398 theaters from 116. "Revolutionary Road," from Paramount Vantage, grew to 38 cinemas from three, lifting sales five-fold to $979,000. Both captured Golden Globe nominations for best picture, a sign they may vie for the Oscar.

"This is a good weekend for them because the smaller Oscar contenders won't be overshadowed by the marketing push for brand-new films," Media By Numbers President Paul Dergarabedian said in an interview prior to the results.

Academy Award nominees will be announced on January 22.