The Fault in Our Stars, a heart-wrenching love story about teens who meet in a cancer support group, won over moviegoers with a stellar $48.2 million at US and Canadian theatres over the weekend, handily beating the new Tom Cruise sci-fi action film, Edge of Tomorrow.

Edge of Tomorrow, which cost about $175 million, had to settle for third place with $29.1 million from Friday through Sunday, according to estimates from tracking firm Rentrak.

Maleficent, starring Angelina Jolie in Walt Disney Co.’s reimagining of the Sleeping Beauty fairy tale, took in $33.5 million from Friday through Sunday to finish second.

The Fault in Our Stars, produced for just $12 million, is based on John Green’s bestselling novel about a girl who wheels around a portable oxygen tank as she fights metastatic cancer, and her boyfriend who lost a leg to the disease. Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort, who played siblings in dystopian thriller Divergent, star as the couple.

Fervent fans of the book turned the film into a social media phenomenon long before it hit theatres. The trailer was viewed more than 21 million times on You Tube, while Green, known for a You Tube video blog, tweeted to some 2.6 million followers.

The Fault in Our Stars is the latest film to tap into a teen frenzy surrounding a bestselling book, following blockbusters like The Hunger Games and Twilight.

“This far exceeded our most optimistic expectations” of just under $30 million, said Chris Aronson, president of domestic distribution for 20th Century Fox, the unit of 21st Century Fox that released the film.

Aronson noted that the film was also playing well in big city, suburban and smaller markets.