CRUISE-ING FOR A BRUISING STAR'S OFF-SCREEN, OFF-KILTER ANTICS MAY TURN AUDIENCES FROM HIS FILM.

Byline: Greg Hernandez Staff Writer

With Hollywood desperately trying to end its 14-week box office slump, the release of superstar Tom Cruise's newest summer blockbuster ought to guarantee a big payday.

But the star's erratic behavior lately - including a love-struck appearance on ``The Oprah Winfrey Show'' with new girlfriend Katie Holmes and his out-there promotion of the Church of Scientology - could backfire and turn off the huge potential audience for the costly science-fiction epic ``War of the Worlds'' being released June 29 by Paramount Pictures, industry experts said Thursday.

``He just seems so outside himself and so bizarre,'' said brand and image consultant Morris Reid, the managing director of Westin Rinehart in New York City. ``The public is saying, 'Wow. This is weird.' I think people are genuinely concerned.''

There have also been widespread reports this week that there are some discussions taking place about whether Paramount should proceed with production of Cruise's next film, ``Mission: Impossible 3,'' reportedly because of soaring budget concerns. The studio did not return several calls for comment.

Paramount, under the leadership of new studio head Brad Grey since February, is on the comeback trail after several years of lackluster box office results. The studio scored a solid hit over the Memorial Day weekend with the Adam Sandler comedy ``The Longest Yard'' but ``Worlds'' is the studio's tent-pole summer film and being counted on to help return it to box office glory.

But discussion about ``Worlds,'' directed by Steven Spielberg, has clearly taken a back seat to coverage of Cruise's love life.

Cruise, 42, began dating 26-year-old Holmes in April. She next co-stars in the June 17 release ``Batman Begins,'' which has led to unflattering speculation that the relationship may be a publicity stunt.

``Isn't it convenient that Tom Cruise is dating Katie Holmes?'' wondered box office analyst Robert Bucksbaum, president of Reel Source Inc. ``Why not date the woman who has a blockbuster coming out right about the same time? If you saw the performance on 'Oprah,' it was absolutely over the top.''

On ``Oprah,'' a gushing Cruise jumped on and off Winfrey's sofa, dropped to his knees repeatedly, and proclaimed his love for Holmes before bringing the former ``Dawson's Creek'' star onstage at the end of the show.

``This is a big, big star, one of the most successful box office stars ever,'' Reid said. ``He hasn't had a slump. He's the type of star that commands attention with or without these kinds of antics. I've never seen him jump up and down like a schoolboy.''

Cruise has also been lambasted by actress Brooke Shields, who recently released a book telling of her battle with postpartum depression. Cruise, an ardent believer in Scientology, was critical in a television interview of Shields using prescription drugs to deal with her condition. The actress responded by calling his comments ``dangerous.''

But if the old adage that any publicity is good publicity is true, then Cruise would appear to be a roaring success. Speculation over some kind of possible superstar implosion have been topics of discussion everywhere from talk radio to Internet blogs to entertainment industry lunch spots.

Cruise and Holmes, already a ubiquitous presence on the covers of Us Weekly and In Touch since they went public in late April, were on the cover of People magazine this week for the first time.

``Tom's appearance on 'Oprah' certainly got people across the country talking about his new relationship with Katie Holmes,'' said People magazine assistant managing editor Todd Gold. ``It had that water cooler effect and was smart on Tom Cruise's account. He got pretty much the entire country talking about it.''

Cruise, who rose to stardom in the 1983 hit ``Risky Business,'' has the most consistent box office record of any star, with a dozen $100 million- plus grossing movies spanning nearly 20 years: ``Collateral,'' ``The Last Samurai,'' ``Minority Report,'' ``Vanilla Sky,'' ``Mission: Impossible 2,'' ``A Few Good Men,'' ``The Firm,'' ``Interview With the Vampire,'' ``Mission: Impossible,'' ``Jerry Maguire,'' ``Top Gun'' and ``Rain Man.''

But the star has not had a film even approach the $200 million mark domestically since 2000's ``Mission: Impossible 2.''

``I think he wants to prove to the world that he is still the No. 1 box office star,'' said Gitesh Pandya, editor of BoxOfficeGuru.com. ``His last couple of films have been older skewing; they are not really films with a lot of teenage appeal. 'War of the Worlds' has some of the broadest appeal of anything he has done recently.

``Now that he's in his 40s and a little detached form the MTV generation of today, it's important that young people still consider him a sexy Hollywood hunk,'' Pandya added.

Hollywood needs some of Cruise's box office muscle right now despite the current success of ``Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith,'' which is closing in on the $300 million mark domestically.

As of Sunday, box office revenue for 2005 lagged 4.4 percent behind last year's totals and attendance was down by a troubling 7.25 percent, according to the box office tracking firm Exhibitor Relations Co.

Greg Hernandez, [phone]

greg.hernandez(at)dailynews.com

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