“Franchise Report Card: Which Studios are Winning the Blockbuster Game?”

From TheWrap:

Sequels and franchise films are Hollywood’s bread and butter.

In the upcoming blockbuster battles, some studios are better positioned than others to compete for box office dollars. In particular, several movie companies face the devastating prospect that their gravy trains are coming to an end — among them Warner Bros.’ “Harry Potter” and Summit’s “Twilight.”

Thanks to reboots and several big ticket purchases such as Disney’s recent acquisition of Marvel, Hollywood is poised to revitalize old source material or dig deeper into the comic book well. In other words, get ready for Harry Potter, the even earlier years.

To help the major studios out (not that they asked us!), TheWrap checked in with their upcoming slates to assess who’s got the tentpole films to compete in the long run — and who is looking a little light in the blockbuster department.

And which studios get what grades?

Warner Bros.: B

Paramount: B-

Columbia Pictures: B

Walt Disney Pictures: A

Universal: C

20th Century Fox: B-

MGM: D

Universal is sitting on a C, but they hit a home run this summer with Despicable Me, a project based on original source material. Perhaps they’ll take the lead in busting open coffers to by original spec scripts, not just look to do remakes, sequels, pre-branded brands, etc.

Just saying.

For more of TheWrap article, go here.