VIDEO RENTALS : Can ‘Bad Influence’ Overtake ‘Daisy’?

Who’s going to drive “Driving Miss Daisy” out of the top spot of the Billboard magazine rental chart? Maybe it will be “Bad Influence,” the sordid thriller starring Rob Lowe and James Spader, which is the hottest new video to hit the market since “Miss Daisy” cruised in back in early August. “Miss Daisy” has been so strong that it’s kept “Born on the Fourth of July”--which has been doing big rental business--in second place. Zany “Nuns on the Run” sprinted from No. 21 to No. 14 and is a good bet to crack the Top 10. So far, renters haven’t been that mad about “Madhouse,” the madcap Kristie Alley comedy, which moved up just one notch to No. 17 in its second chart week. Debuts: the hip-hop movie “House Party” (No. 23) and “Nightbreed,” which could be a big Halloween title.

* This remake of a famed 1937 tear-jerker wasn’t quite as big as expected in theaters, though the gross--$20 million--was respectable. But it could be a big home video hit, thanks to the drawing power of stars Bette Midler and John Goodman. In its second chart week, “Stella” jumped from No. 12 to No. 8.

VIDEO RENTALS

Ranking Weeks Ranking 2 Weeks On Rental Top Rentals Last Week Ago Chart 1. “Driving Miss Daisy” 1 1 7 (Warner) 2. “Born on the Fourth 2 2 5 of July” (MCA/Universal) 3. “Bad Influence” 11 ... 2 (RCA/Columbia) 4. “Hard to Kill” 3 3 7 (Paramount) 5. “Joe Versus the 4 8 4 Volcano” (Warner) * “Stella” (Touchstone) 12 ... 2