  Will Forte as clueless special operative MacGruber. (Handout Photo)
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HOLLYWOOD — With this weekend’s arrival of Iron Man 2, the 2010 summer movie season is expected to kick off with an iron-clad blast.
But while the Robert Downey Jr. sequel and several additional titles, including Sex and the City 2, Toy Story 3, Shrek Forever After and, of course, The Twilight Saga: Eclipse are fully expected to heat up the box office, others are generating big, looming question marks.
Anxiously waiting in the wings are a number of proven performers who have seen their winning streaks take a bit of a hit of late but are hoping the following will get them back on track:
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (May 28)
At length: A seven-year-old video game is given the boffo Bruckheimer treatment, with Jake Gyllenhaal playing a daring prince who does battle with a villainous Ben Kingsley and about $100-million worth of special effects.
At stake: Even though Gyllenhaal looks admittedly dashing in the trailers — and he was at one point considered for Spider-Man 4 — he’s still an unproven quantity as an action hero and his recent output, including Brothers and Rendition, stiffed at the ticket counters.
Robin Hood (May 14)
At length: Russell Crowe robs from the rich, yada, yada, yada, in another epic collaboration with director Ridley Scott (Gladiator, American Gangster) while the always impressive Cate Blanchett lends a hand as the fair Maid Marian.
At stake: Given that State of Play and Body of Lies were nothing to crow about, it’s going to take more than mighty acting chops to make us forget Kevin Costner’s Robin Dude: Prince of Thieves or, for that matter, Mel Brooks’ Robin Hood: Men in Tights.
MacGruber (May 14)
At length: Saturday Night Live’s Will Forte brings his clueless special op to the big screen with backup from Ryan Phillippe and Kristen Wiig and resistance from Val Kilmer as MacGruber’s sworn enemy, the diabolical Dieter Von Cunth.
At stake: Trying to think of the last time an SNL sketch actually worked as a feature-length movie. The Ladies Man? Nope. Superstar? Nuh-uh. Blues Brothers 2000? Yeah, right. A Night at the Roxbury? Stuart Saves His Family? It’s Pat? Hmm …
Knight and Day (June 18)
At length: Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz try a little action comedy on for size as a globe-trotting fugitive twosome who make like Brangelina in Mr. and Mrs. Smith with a hefty budget to match.
At stake: The last time Cruise and Diaz teamed up was in 2001’s Vanilla Sky, back when he was still box-office bait. Lately, however, after alienating his fan base with the likes of Lions for Lambs and Valkyrie, Suri’s dad is hoping they’ll embrace his bouncier side.
Grown Ups (June 25)
At length: Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, David Spade, Kevin James, Rob Schneider and Norm McDonald play a bunch of old high-school buddies, who get reacquainted, Big Chill-style, on a Fourth of July weekend. Call it SNL: The Reunion plus Paul Blart.
At stake: Approaching his mid-40s, Happy Gilmore finds himself searching for a happy medium somewhere between the immature stuff and more serious but far less successful fare such as Funny People and Reign Over Me. This one could go either way.
Michael Rechtshaffen, a Canadian entertainment writer based in Los Angeles, appears Wednesdays and Sundays.
