Will 'Collateral' Cruise along?

DreamWorks banks on thesp's turn as villain

By GABRIEL SNYDER

This article was updated at 7:35 p.m.

Can a bad Tom make good? DreamWorks finds out this weekend when "Collateral," the first film in which Tom Cruise plays a villain, opens at 3,188 theaters.

Revolution and Sony are counterprogramming the weekend with Brittany Murphy romantic comedy "Little Black Book," which bows in 2,445 venues.

Despite the arrival of fresh competish, Disney's M. Night Shyamalan's "The Village" has a shot at staying on top of the box office chart after opening at $50.7 million last weekend.

Cruise has a tremendous record of opening pictures -- his past five wide releases, going back to 1999's "Eyes Wide Shut," have all topped $20 million. Last fall, "The Last Samurai" bowed to $24.3 million, and in June 2002, "Minority Report" took in $35.7 million in its first frame.

Helmer Michael Mann's films do not traditionally debut huge, and "Collateral" will be his first pic to launch during the summer since 1986's "Manhunter."

Mann's most recent, Will Smith starrer "Ali," opened on Christmas 2001 with $14.7 million -- the director's best bow of his career. Neither of his two previous pics, "The Insider" in 1999 and "Heat" in 1995, opened with more than $10 million.

Hot enough for summer

DreamWorks distrib prexy Jim Tharp said the studio wanted to play "Collateral" during the summer -- and rushed to get the pic ready for release just in time to do so -- because it believes the action and suspense elements will play to summer crowds.

"Rather than waiting for an October date, we felt the overall gross potential would be better in the summer because midweeks are so much better," he said. "With Labor Day falling late on the calendar this year, you almost get another week of summer playtime."

Key to the success of the pic will be whether Cruise's fans warm to him playing a hit man. Asked if the change in character type could affect box office, Tharp said, "It's going to be interesting. I don't know about opening weekend. I don't think it will have a role in a long-term box office potential because the film is going to be so well received."

This August is the second in a row that Murphy will open a comedy. Last August, she starred in "Uptown Girls," which bowed with $11.3 million.

"Little Black Book" is tracking to open at a similar number, which would put it into contention for the No. 3 spot with the second week of Paramount's "The Manchurian Candidate." The political thriller opened to $20 million.

'Water' opens

Also opening this weekend is Lions Gate shark tale "Open Water," which starts its run on 47 screens. Pic, which is receiving a lot of media attention as a potential "Blair Witch"-like hit in the making, is due to expand to more than 2,000 theaters Aug. 20.

Also opening this week is United Artists' "Code 46" on three screens in Gotham and L.A.

Newmarket will debut South African crime drama "Stander" on seven screens while Palm Pictures introduces "Last Life in the Universe" on one screen in Gotham.

Cinema Libre is giving Fox News Channel-bashing doc "Outfoxed" a theatrical release, bowing the Robert Greenwald film on five screens in New York, L.A., Washington and San Francisco. Originally launched on DVD, theater preems held on Thursday with MoveOn.org, which co-produced the doc, reportedly sold out within hours.

Fox Searchlight will expand its two indie laffers. "Napoleon Dynamite," which crossed the $10 million mark on Tuesday, will widen by another 123 locations for a total of 546 in its ninth week. "Garden State" will expand to 35 engagements. Pic has continued to do stellar business on its first nine screens. After averaging $22,346 per screen over the weekend, it has posted a daily screen average of nearly $4,000 the first three days of this week.

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