June 6 (Reuters) – In a big weekend for 1980s nostalgia, a remake of “The Karate Kid” easily took the No. 1 spot at the North American box office on Sunday, leaving a big-screen version of “The A-Team” far behind.

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“The Karate Kid,” starring Will Smith’s son Jaden Smith as a young martial artist and Jackie Chan as his mentor, earned $56 million during the three days beginning Friday, according to estimates provided by its distributor, Columbia Pictures.

The $40 million picture, shot in China, played strongly with youngsters, the Sony Corp (6758.T) (SNE.N) unit said, with people under 25 accounting for 56 percent of the audience.

Both “Karate Kid” and “A-Team” had been expected to vie for the top spot, each in the $30 million range.

Instead, “The A-Team” opened with $26 million, said 20th Century Fox. The News Corp (NWS.O) unit hoped the $90 million film action picture would benefit from strong word of mouth among young viewers, even if critics hated the adaptation of the TV series about a team of renegade soldiers of fortune.

Last weekend’s champion, “Shrek Forever After,” fell to No. 3 with $15.8 million. The four-week total for the DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc (DWA.O)-produced cartoon rose to $210.1 million. (Reporting by Dean Goodman; Editing by Eric Walsh) (please visit our entertainment blog via www.reuters.com or on blogs.reuters.com/fanfare/)