Still, assuming everything goes off without a hitch, we'll see Cruise flash his smile as Ethan Hunt once again. But what can make that movie succeed in ways Knight & Day couldn't -- besides the warm embrace of the familiar? Here are some suggestions.

Hire a new director

God love Brad Bird for giving us two of the most fully realized animated films in the last twenty years (those being Iron Giant and The Incredibles). But if you were Paramount and Tom Cruise, would you want an inexperienced live-action director fronting the very risky Mission: Impossible IV or would you want someone else. Joe Carnahan was famously hired for M:I III and subsequently let go after a year -- make the decision quicker this time around. Dump Bird and grab either Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead) or Rueben Fleischer (Zombieland), the two men he reportedly beat out for the position. Short of them, hiring an old pro wouldn't hurt either -- perhaps Cruise's old pal Tony Scott.

Embrace Tom's Age

Tom Cruise is far from old --he just turned 48 last week -- but in Hollywood years, he might as well be a dinosaur. And while audiences have no problem watching May-December romances play out, it's sometimes harder to swallow that someone near 50 could be jumping away from explosions. How to fix this unavoidable glitch? Write the script around it! Make Cruise's Ethan Hunt older, more fallable, less invincible. The reason why the first Mission: Impossible worked so well was because it felt like there were stakes; the second and third films felt like Road Runner cartoons. Have Hunt be a settled down family man and office drone tasked to one last mission. Besides, he's getting to old for this -- well, you know. And speaking of which...

Bring on a Younger Assistant

Since Mission: Impossible IV became a somewhat reality, most observers have felt that a "passing of the torch" moment was needed. And you know what? It is! Partner Cruise's Hunt up with a young and dashing IMF agent and play off the comedy of their mismatched union. Just don't cast Shia LaBeouf and don't make it like Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Star Trek actor Chris Pine would work -- as would Jake Gyllenhaal or Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Or, go for broke and give Taylor Lautner a call. Because when it comes to box office success, everyone is on Team Jacob.

1. The Twilight Saga: Eclipse: $69 million ($161 million total)

There is no possible way that the opening for Eclipse can be seen as anything other than a huge success. However! Despite laying claim to the widest release ever, Eclipse couldn't top the $200 million five-day gross that Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen opened to last summer. And its three-day total pales in comparison to the $142.8 million that New Moon gobbled up in November -- though that should be expected with the release spread out over five days. Those quibbles aside, another $20 million in ticket sales on Monday will allow Eclipse to break the Fourth of July weekend record of $180 million held by Spider-Man 2. It's official: Vampires are the new apple pie.

2. The Last Airbender: $40.6 million ($57 million total)

Maybe being the worst movie of the year isn't such a bad thing. Despite near across the board hatred from critics, The Last Airbender managed $40.6 million over the three-day weekend and will likely top $70 million in receipts come Monday. Granted those numbers aren't herculean, but consider: The three-day opening for The Last Airbender is bigger than the starts for Sex and the City 2, Prince of Persia, The A-Team and Knight and Day. It's also the third best start for director M. Night Shyamalan, behind Signs and The Village. Couple that with an international-friendly product and this isn't the Waterworld-style bloodbath many were expecting. Now let's see how much things tumble in weekend two...

3. Toy Story 3: $30.1 million ($289 million total)

The bad news is that Toy Story 3 dropped almost 50 percent this weekend and fell into third place. The good news? So what! On Monday, the threequel will pass Up to become the second highest grossing film in the history of Pixar and it's less than $50 million away from passing Finding Nemo to top the list. Everyone loves Buzz and Woody... except for those pesky Russians.

4. Grown Ups: $18.5 million ($77 million total)

Typical Adam Sandler. Off 54 percent, Grown Ups will easily cross $100 million and probably top out around $120 -- which would put it in the same ballpark as I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry and 50 First Dates. One major advantage that Grown Ups has for even greater success, however, is the calendar. The next big comedy of the summer -- Steve Carell's Dinner for Schmucks -- doesn't get released until the end of July.

5. Knight and Day: $10.2 million ($45.5 million total)

If you put Knight & Day in the same arena as the similarly themed Duplicity -- remember, with Clive Owen and Julia Roberts? -- then the $45.5 million grossed thus far is more than adequate. But only people working at Twentieth Century Fox are likely to cut this film that much slack. Down 49 percent, Knight & Day will be lucky to cross $80 million domestically. Maybe next time Tom Cruise should try playing a vampire. Again.

The Hobbit

Whether you love The Lord of the Rings trilogy or find it to be pompous nerd bait, one thing is undeniable: Those movies are successfully epic on a scale that few films have been in the last 20 years. It goes to reason that The Hobbit could follow suit, especially if Peter Jackson winds up directing, as rumored. Of course for that to happen, there would need to be a budget and money to pay said budget, but those are semantics! Here's guessing some other studio figures out at a way to make this movie—and its sequel—happen by 2015.

The Next James Bond

James Bond will return in Don't Hold Your Breath. The next Bond film was put on hold "indefinitely," meaning that established talent like Sam Mendes and Daniel Craig will probably have to move on. Upside: New Bond rumors!

The Three Stooges

If it feels like you've been hearing about the Farrelly Brothers attempt at The Three Stooges with Benicio del Toro and Sean Penn in lead roles for years, that's probably because you have. Alas, prepare to hear about it for a little bit longer. Still, if this fever dream project ever does happen, expect it to be awesome.

The Materese Circle

Back in February 2009, Tom Cruise had his pick of the studio litter ... and wound up choosing Knight & Day (then called Wichita). But The Materese Circle still feels like the best film out of that lot. At the time, Cruise, Denzel Washington and David Cronenberg were working on the project—a spy thriller from Robert Ludlum that would be oh-so-prescient because of the fact that one of the characters is a Russian spy. How 2010!

Cabin in the Woods

It's a horror movie in 3-D—so, demerits—but this one has Richard Jenkins and Bradley Whitford playing the leads who may be baddies, a bunch of fresh-faced youngsters in a cabin and dialogue courtesy of Joss Whedon. Man, poor Whedon—can't that guy ever catch a break?

Knight & Day

What's the story: We know Hollywood loves remakes, but was it really necessary to take another swing at Killers so soon after its failure at the box office? For those who haven't put on a television, turned on a computer or read a newspaper in the last month, Knight & Day finds Tom Cruise — and his toothy grin — starring as Ray Miller, a rogue C.I.A. agent who becomes infatuated with civilian named June Havens (Cameron Diaz, also heavily featuring her best Colgate smile) while trying to avoid explosions. There are double crosses — hey, Peter Sarsgaard, we hope Knight & Day bought you and Maggie Gyllenhaal the finest organic groceries Park Slope has to offer — and preposterous stunts, but in the end, this is The Tom Cruise Show. And based on the initial box office — Knight & Day opened on Wednesday to just $3.8 million, the lowest opening day for a major film starring Tom Cruise since Far and Away — audiences have long since changed the channel. Critics have too — though our Sara Vilkomerson found Knight & Day to be "straight-up fun, hiding nothing about its intentions" — but for the sake of Twentieth Century Fox's marketing department, maybe go buy a ticket to see Knight & Day. After all the work they put in, they deserve your help.

Who should see it: Mr. & Mrs. Smith.

Grown Ups

What's the story: Another week, another worst movie of the summer. This time around, it's Grown Ups that gets to take a turn in the barrel. Basically a Happy Madison version of The Big Chill, Adam Sandler's latest just seems like an excuse for the mumbling superstar to hang out with his friends — Rob Schneider, David Spade, Chris Rock, Kevin James, and director Dennis Dugan. The reviews have been toxic — with some going as far to say that this is the worst movie of Sandler's career. And this is the guy who made Waterboy. And Little Nicky. Abandon all hope ye who enter here.

Who should see it: Lorne Michaels.

Also opening this weekend: Wait, there's a good movie coming out today too? Stop the presses! Restrepo — about Sebastian Junger and Tim Hetherington being embedded with a platoon of Marines in Afghanistan — won the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance for documentaries, and will probably be more worth your time than seeing Grown Ups. Just guessing.