Fast run-up to ‘War of the Worlds’

An update of “The War of the Worlds,” starring Tom Cruise and directed by Steven Spielberg, has been put on the fast track, replacing “Mission: Impossible 3” as Paramount Pictures’ tent-pole movie next year.

The science-fiction thriller is scheduled to start filming in November. Spielberg has become available with the delay of his film dealing with the aftermath of the attacks at the 1972 Munich Summer Olympics. And the third installment of the hit “Mission: Impossible” franchise, which had been scheduled for next summer, has been struck by director difficulties.

“Mission: Impossible 3” is now set to shoot next summer, with J.J. Abrams, who created television’s “Alias” and “Felicity,” set to make his feature directorial debut.