Los Angeles ? So many summer movies, so many question marks.

Is The Rock actor enough to carry “The Scorpion King” without the digitally grafted insect body he wore in “The Mummy Returns”?

Will surfing the web as “Spider-Man,” another half-human, half-bug, make an action hero out of Tobey Maguire?

Have the people who bring you Austin Powers found a film title that won’t prompt counter-measures by the people who bring you James Bond?

And will the people who brought you “Little Nicky” be burned in effigy for daring a remake of Frank Capra’s “Mr. Deeds Goes to Town”?

If audiences can buy nice guy Denzel Washington as a bad cop in “Training Day,” can they buy nice guy Tom Hanks as a hit man in “Road to Perdition”?

Might movie marquees collapse under the heft of Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise’s names on “Minority Report”?

And the big question: “Attack of the Clones”?

Sci-fi and comics

Fans have heaped scorn on the B-movie title of “Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones,” a film expected to follow its four predecessors as Hollywood’s blockbuster hit of the summer.

Rick McCallum, producing partner of “Star Wars” creator George Lucas, said fans initially derided most of the series’ chapter tags including “The Phantom Menace” and the original film’s “A New Hope.” They eventually embrace the titles as befitting the story lines, he said.

“That’s part of the fun of it,” McCallum said. “There is a group of people who are seriously deranged, and who we love dearly. That’s what makes ‘Star Wars’ work, in a strange way.”

The latest chapter brings back Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan Kenobi and Natalie Portman as Padme Amidala, the story picking up 10 years after the action of “Phantom Menace.” The main cast addition is Hayden Christensen as Anakin Skywalker the future Darth Vader now a Jedi knight in training.

Obi-Wan and Anakin are assigned to protect Padme from a separatist faction, setting the stage for romance between Anakin and Padme and his eventual attitude adjustment to the dark side of the Force in Episode III.

Before Anakin jumps back into action May 16, Hollywood already will have delivered two powerhouse offerings, “The Scorpion King” and “Spider-Man.”

A spinoff of “The Mummy” franchise, “Scorpion King” debuts more than a month before Memorial Day, once the traditional start of the movie industry’s busy summer season. It stars pro wrestler The Rock as the warrior he originated in last summer’s smash “The Mummy Returns.”

Two weeks later comes franchise-in-the-making “Spider-Man,” starring Maguire as comic-book hero Peter Parker, transformed into the agile crime-fighter after he’s bitten by a mutant spider. Willem Dafoe plays the villainous Green Goblin and Kirsten Dunst is girl-next-door Mary Jane Watson.

Here are some other highlights of movies to come this summer:

This month

“Jason X”: Archaeologists of the 25th century dig up the “Friday the 13th” maniac. Fun ensues.

“Life or Something Like It”: A shallow journalist (Angelina Jolie) takes stock when a street prophet predicts her end is nigh.

“Murder by Numbers”: Homicide detectives (Sandra Bullock and Ben Chaplin) track a duo of brilliant killers.

“The Salton Sea”: A man (Val Kilmer) falls in with unsavory characters after his wife is murdered.

“The Scorpion King”: The mummy, er, The Rock returns as the ancient warrior in a spinoff of “The Mummy” flicks.

“World Traveler”: Billy Crudup leaves his wife and son for a soul-searching road trip. Julianne Moore co-stars.

May

“About a Boy”: From the novel by Nick Hornby (“High Fidelity”), with Hugh Grant as a womanizer hitting on single moms.

“CQ”: Roman Coppola, son of Francis Ford Coppola, makes his directing debut with the quirky tale of a ’60s filmmaker. Jeremy Davies stars.

“Enough”: A waitress (Jennifer Lopez) marries a rich guy who turns out to be a dangerous nutcase.

“Hollywood Ending”: Woody Allen as a down-and-out director who goes to work for his ex (Tea Leoni).

“The Importance of Being Earnest”: Oscar Wilde’s classic, with Rupert Everett, Colin Firth, Frances O’Connor and Reese Witherspoon.

“Insomnia”: Al Pacino, Robin Williams and Hilary Swank in a murder tale in rural Alaska. Christopher Nolan (“Memento”) directs.

“Spider-Man”: Tobey Maguire goes on the Web as the comic-book superhero. Willem Dafoe and Kirsten Dunst co-star.

“Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron”: Animated adventure of a wild horse that finds love and friendship in the Old West.

“Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones”: Obi-Wan, Padme, Anakin and the gang are back to reveal the first glimmerings of future villain Darth Vader.

“The Sum of All Fears”: Ben Affleck foils World War III as Tom Clancy’s CIA analyst Jack Ryan.

“Unfaithful”: “Fatal Attraction” director Adrian Lyne does the adultery thing again. With Richard Gere and Diane Lane.

June

“Bad Company”: Anthony Hopkins and Chris Rock in a spy comedy about a street punk impersonating his slain secret-agent brother.

“The Bourne Identity”: Matt Damon is the amnesiac spy in this thriller based on Robert Ludlum’s novel.

“The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys”: Altar boys at a Catholic school rebel against authority. Jodie Foster co-stars as a nun.

“Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood”: An ensemble comic-drama with Sandra Bullock, Ellen Burstyn, Ashley Judd and Maggie Smith.

“Hey Arnold! The Movie”: Jennifer Jason Leigh and Christopher Lloyd lend voices to the big-screen debut of the TV cartoon.

“Lilo & Stitch”: Animated adventure about a Hawaiian girl who befriends an alien “dog.”

“Love and a Bullet”: Action comedy with Naughty by Nature rapper Treach as a hit man who develops a conscience.

“Minority Report”: Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg team for a sci-fi tale of psychic cops who arrest killers before crimes are committed.

“Mr. Deeds”: Adam Sandler is the goodhearted, wealthy heir in a remake of “Mr. Deeds Goes to Town.”

“Pumpkin”: A sorority girl (Christina Ricci) has her shallow life turned around by a mentally challenged athlete.

“Scooby-Doo”: The live-action version of the cartoon features Freddie Prinze Jr. and Sarah Michelle Gellar.

“Windtalkers”: John Woo directs a tale about Navajo code-keepers in World War II. Nicolas Cage stars.

July

“Austin Powers in Goldmember”: Mike Myers returns as the swinging spy and his many nemeses, including a new villain with some golden anatomy.

“Halloween: Resurrection”: Slasher Michael Myers puts out the welcome mat for teens spending a night in his home.

“Like Mike”: Teen rapper Lil’ Bow Wow finds magical sneakers that turn him into an NBA prodigy.

“Men in Black II”: Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith fight an alien beast masquerading as a lingerie model (Lara Flynn Boyle).

“Possession”: Gwyneth Paltrow in a story of scholars tracing a romantic mystery involving two literary figures of a century past.

“Road to Perdition”: Tom Hanks as an Irish mob hit man seeking revenge for his wife and son’s deaths. Sam Mendes (“American Beauty”) directs.

“Stuart Little 2”: The rodent with Michael J. Fox’s voice tries to rescue a pal (voiced by Melanie Griffith).

“Tadpole”: A Sundance festival favorite about a precocious teen in love with his stepmom (Sigourney Weaver).

August

“The Adventures of Pluto Nash”: Eddie Murphy’s a lunar club owner of the future who takes on the moon mob.

“Blood Work”: Clint Eastwood directs and stars in the story of a retired FBI profiler tracking a serial killer.

“Full Frontal”: Steven Soderbergh’s “unofficial sequel” to “sex, lies and videotape” features Julia Roberts and David Duchovny.

“A Guy Thing”: Bridegroom Jason Lee wakes up with a beautiful woman (Julia Stiles) who’s the cousin of his fiancee (Selma Blair).

“The Good Girl”: Jennifer Aniston as a wife whose extramarital fling turns obsessive. John C. Reilly, Tim Blake Nelson and Jake Gyllenhaal co-star.

“Igby Goes Down”: A teen rebel (Kieran Culkin) hits the road. Co-starring Susan Sarandon, Jeff Goldblum, Claire Danes and Ryan Phillippe.

“The Master of Disguise”: A man of many faces (Dana Carvey) tries to rescue his dad.

“One Hour Photo”: Robin Williams is a lonely photo clerk who becomes a menace to a family.

“Signs”: Farmer Mel Gibson is plagued by crop circles. From writer-director M. Night Shyamalan (“The Sixth Sense”).

“Simone”: Al Pacino as a film director whose artificial actress becomes a Hollywood sensation.

“Spy Kids 2: Island of Lost Dreams”: The pint-size agents square off against rival child spies.

“XXX”: “The Fast and the Furious” star Vin Diesel and director Rob Cohen reunite for an extreme sports spy tale.