Will Smith is the only movie star today to virtually guarantee box office success.

That was until the 2008 film “Seven Pounds.”

The film wasn’t a failure, but it was the first Smith project in some time not to cross the $100 million mark.

We haven’t seen a movie from the former Fresh Prince since then.

Coincidence?

Now, SlashFilm reports the actor is mulling an intriguing new project dubbed “The City That Sailed” – or another sequel to “Men in Black.”

Frankly, the “Black” franchise is hardly worth revisiting, and it’s certainly beneath a talent like Smith at this point. News of a third “Black” reminds us of Eddie Murphy talking up “Beverly Hills Cop IV” or Bruce Willis mulling a fifth “Die Hard.”

It’s not what an uber-star does. Period.

In person, Smith is a charismatic charmer, like a politician at the peak of his powers. But if we see a “Men in Black 3″ soon it’ll be clear Smith’s confident air may be his best acting feat yet.

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Mankind seems pretty uncomfortable about the prospect of robots walking among us.

The upcoming “Terminator Salvation” takes that apprehension to extreme levels, but the 2004 feature “I, Robot” imagined a more nuanced scenario.

The futuristic film depicts a world where robots do our bidding, but a few misfired circuits result in some ‘bots casting off the shackles of their human masters.

Will Smith plays Del Spooner, a sour cop with a grudge against robots. You’d be sour, too, if you hated robots and they were everywhere, working as garbage men, babysitters and chefs. In short, doing the work we don’t want to do any longer.

His suspicions come in handy when the country’s leading robotics guru (James Cromwell) plunges to his death in an apparent suicide. But Spooner suspects something more sinister happened, leading him to find robots who don’t take the rules about hurting humans to their tin-plated hearts.

“I, Robot” delivers some relaxed social commentary and the usual strong performance by Smith, but some ghosts still remain in this machine. Co-star Bridget Moynihan can’t match a fraction of Smith’s star power, and the film’s dialogue ranges from the obvious – “oh, hell no!” – to the inane.

Director Alex Proyas (“Knowing,” “Dark City”) concocts a credible future vision of the Windy City, but he relies too heavily on CGI to plug the visual gaps. It’s like we’re watching a computer software demo rather than a full-blooded action picture.

“I, Robot” falls squarely alongside “I Am Legend” in Smith’s box office ouevre. It’s an occasionally thrilling ride good enough to smash the $100 million mark, but incapable of standing tall against the sci-fi classics that came before it.

(Photo: Will Smith scores another box office KO, despite some clunky dialogue, in “I, Robot.”)

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Kevin James kept me from fleeing the theater while watching Will Smith’s one true disaster – “Hitch.”

But that, plus co-starring with Adam Sandler in “I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry” didn’t certify his box office clout.

It took a “Mall Cop” to do that.

James’ “Paul Blart: Mall Cop” could earn as much as $35 million this weekend, and that’s all based on his hefty appeal. “Cop” isn’t a sequel, or a remake, and there’s no box office draws in the cast other than James.

So congrats, erstwhile “King of Queens.” And let’s hope you use your clout wisely.

(Photo: Kevin James proves he can draw a crowd in the amiable comedy “Paul Blart; Mall Cop.”)

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Will Smith appears on the verge of suicide in the opening minutes of his new drama, “Seven Pounds.”

And it only gets more intense, and more inscrutable, from there.

Smith’s latest, another step away from his days as that alien-busting, zombie-smashing Bad Boy, finds the actor inhabiting his least likable character yet.

He plays Ben Thomas, an IRS agent who thrusts himself into the lives of seven total strangers. Each has a unique problem Ben does his best to alleviate, although like the Man Upstairs he works in mysterious ways.

One problem he can’t do much about concerns Emily (Rosario Dawson), an attractive woman who suffers from congenital heart failure. She initially doubts Ben’s intentions, but she slowly realizes his own heart is in the right place.

It’s only when Ben lets down his guard with Emily that the story’s redemptive arc starts to take shape.

Director Gabriele Muccino, who clicked so easily with Smith on their first pairing, “The Pursuit of Happyness,” is in no hurry to solve the film’s emotional puzzle. Flashbacks fill in some of the story gaps, but a better film would mete them out in a more cogent fashion. At times we’re told too much about Ben’s situation, but in other scenes we’re left clueless as to why he acts the way he does.

It’s a dramatic tease that feels like a stunt whipped up during a screenwriting workshop.

Smith has never seemed so vulnerable, so helpless, on screen before. He buries his trademark smile and natural buoyancy, leaving only his vacant 1,000-yard stares. But he remains a nimble performer, one who can locate the layers of pain within his character without pushing the audience away.

Actors sometimes need a few roles, or even a decade in front of the camera, before they fully come into their own. Consider Dawson’s work here as her personal tipping point. She’s radiant even as her character’s heart begins to falter. It’s a star turn which never distracts from the name above the title.

“Seven Pounds” ends with an exclamation point, a right hook which is sending some film critics reeling. But there’s something so irredeemably healing about these final scenes, so hopeful, that it’s impossible to deny their impact.

(Photo: Rosario Dawson plays a women with a broken heart, and a weakness for Will Smith, in “Seven Pounds.”)

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Is Will Smith heading for his “Last Action Hero” moment?

Smith, the biggest film star of the moment, headlines the new drama “Seven Pounds” which opens tomorrow.

The early reviews aren’t kind, but they also hint at a collective dissatisfaction with Smith — the actor and the man.

It reminds me of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s career circa 1993. Ah-nuld was riding about as high as any actor could at that point, and he was primed for more success as “Last Action Hero” opened.

“Hero” flopped, both with movie goers and critics. The Ah-nold balloon was punctured. Big time. And the culture at large seemed happy with that fact.

The New York Post’s Lou Lumenick is among the first to pile on Smith’s “Seven Pounds,” tackling the film and its star. Variety’s Anne Thompson joined the fun earlier this week.

MSNBC’s Alonso Duralde says the film is “the longest, most dour episode of ‘My Name is Earl’ imaginable.”

America is a great country, but we have a wicked talent for building up stars — and then eagerly tearing them down. Sometimes, we even let them get back up again (John Travolta … and maybe Britney Spears).

I interviewed Smith recently for a piece running in tomorrow’s Washington Times. He did come off as very opinionated, so perhaps he’s starting to read his own press clippings. And he can look no further than his pal Tom Cruise to see what happens when a movie star gets too disconnected from reality.

But for now, let’s judge Smith on his films. I suspect he’ll avoid Schwarzenegger’s fate if we do just that.

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(Photo: Will Smith plays a broken IRS agent in “Seven Pounds,” opening Dec. 19)

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I‘m no psychic, but occasionally I crank up my WWTW crystal ball and like to share what it says:

• No one involved with “The Day the Earth Stood Still,” the global warming remake of the 1951 sci-fi classic, will be asked anything but softball questions about the film’s environmental subject.
• Clint Eastwood’s “Changeling” will be nominated in at least two major Oscar categories — two more than it deserves.

• Meryl Streep will be nominated for something come January. My only mortal lock here.
• Jim Carrey’s “Yes Man” won’t make nearly the scratch of his previous straight-on comedies.
• Whoever hosts the upcoming Oscar ceremony won’t lay a glove on President Obama, but will find some way to blast former President Bush.
• Will Smith’s latest film, “Seven Pounds,” doesn’t involve car chases, space aliens or superheroes. It’s not even a sequel or remake. But it’s still gonna make some serious coin. (The trailer is below).

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Racism is alive, and most certainly well, in America circa 2008.

But let’s take a moment to absorb two promising facts.

Today, the only movie star who puts fannies in the seats every … single … time out is Will Smith. And arguably the lone writer/director who consistently crushes the box office competition is Tyler Perry.

We couldn’t say that 10, or even five years ago. Now we can.

(Photo: Will Smith of “Hancock” fame is the most bankable box office attraction in Hollywood.)

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