Franchisography

After taking on a studio film (2002’s Insomnia) and reinventing the superhero film (2005’s Batman Begins), Christopher Nolan finally had enough clout to fund the adaptation of a Christopher Priest novel that he had PLEDGED to be his next project … Continue reading →

Season 4 of FRANCHISOGRAPHY begins with a look at the original feature films of Christopher Nolan, the filmmaker who became a franchise. And it all started with the breakout success of his second feature, 2000’s MEMENTO. Originally pitched to him … Continue reading →

In 2024, two of the biggest production companies in modern horror, James Wan’s Atomic Monster and Jason Blum’s Blumhouse, would successfully merge with the goal of increasing their output of horror hits. Their first major production would be an untitled … Continue reading →

Round 1 of this year’s Listener Pick Tournament is over and Nick & Scott are here to discuss where the choices made by our listeners on Discord and Patreon have led us. There were surprising victories and devastating losses, but … Continue reading →

Well… that happened. Originally conceived for Happy Death Day and Freaky director Christopher Landon, Scream 7 was going to feature new franchise stars Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega as the returning Carpenter Sisters… until all of that was thrown out … Continue reading →

It’s a Listener Pick Tournament Bonus-ode! With March barely a week away, Nick & Scott are joined by Patreon Producer Mark Ybarra to reveal the 32 franchises that were chosen for this year’s Listener Pick Tournament and discuss their potential … Continue reading →

February is almost here and March is right around the corner… …which means it’s almost time for this year’s Listener Pick Tournament! Join Nick and Scott as they discuss this year’s Tournament rules and regulations! What’s off limits? What’s back … Continue reading →

The second act of Wicked lives in infamy for many Broadway fans. When the filmmakers behind the big screen adaptation made the decision to split their saga into two movies, they were left with an interesting challenge: an entire film … Continue reading →

It’s a Finale-sode! Join Nick & Scott as they discuss/rank the Oz franchise, pitch ideas for future Oz movies, look back at our third season, and look forward to Season Four, coming in Summer 2026! Next week: Our hiatus begins! … Continue reading →

Good news! FRANCHISOGRAPHY at last covers the movie musical that became a pop culture phenomenon during the 2024 holiday season. It’s John M. Chu’s WICKED! Rumblings of a film adaptation of Gregory Maguire’s 1995 novel predates even the Tony-winning musical … Continue reading →

On the heels of 2010’s Alice in Wonderland’s massive box office success, Disney was eager to have another live action 3D fantasy ready for audiences quickly, and with the musical Wicked still filling seats on Broadway, the world of Oz … Continue reading →

After buying the film rights to L. Frank Baum’s remaining Oz books in 1954, Walt Disney Productions began work on a live action film starring the teen stars of “The Mickey Mouse Club,” but plans quickly stalled. It wouldn’t be … Continue reading →

Premiering on Broadway in 1975, The Wiz: The Super Soul Musical “Wonderful Wizard of Oz” won seven Tony Awards including Best Musical and became a mainstream breakthrough for productions with all-Black casts on Broadway. By the late 70’s, Motown mastermind … Continue reading →

Follow the Yellow Brick Road with Nick and Scott as they uncover the secrets of the Oz franchise, winner of the 2025 FRANCHISOGRAPHY Listener’s Pick Tournament! L. Frank Baum’s children’s book was already a beloved American classic by the time … Continue reading →

We interrupt your regularly scheduled mini-series for our second ever Centenisode! Join Nick and Scott as they celebrate 200 episodes of Franchisography, re-answer listener questions, and rank all of the franchises that we’ve covered since out 100th episode. Plus, after … Continue reading →

It’s a Betweenisode! Join Nick & Scott as they rank the American Pie franchise, go over the American Pie Presents DTV spin-offs, propose an American Pie reboot, announce our next mini-series, and discuss what to expect on next week’s Centenisode! … Continue reading →

Writing partners Jon Hurtwitz and Hayden Schlossberg saw the first American Pie multiple times in theaters during their freshman year of college. Like original Pie screenwriter Adam Herz, the pair would mine their own adolescent adventures to create comedy in … Continue reading →

While on set for American Pie 2, series creator and screenwriter Adam Herz revealed to producer Chris Moore that he already had an idea for a third and final chapter to their raunchy coming of age saga: the boys throwing … Continue reading →

After the first slice became an unexpected smash hit at the box office, Universal Pictures was quick to greenlight a sequel. Screenwriter Adam Herz once again decided to draw from his own life experiences, this time recalling that awkward transition … Continue reading →

We interrupt the American Pie franchise with yet another Bonus Feature! Marvel’s First Family has returned to the silver screen, this time in the creative hands of Marvel Studios and WandaVision director Matt Shakman. Will a comic book adaptation about … Continue reading →

Inspired by the success of Scream in 1996, young screenwriter Adam Herz set out to do for 80’s sex comedies like Porky’s and Bachelor Party what Wes Craven’s masterpiece did for the slasher. The result was an unexpected smash hit … Continue reading →

We continue to interrupt your regularly scheduled next franchise with yet another Bonus Feature! After the failure of the DCEU, Superman is back to kickstart a brand new DC Universe with writer/director James Gunn taking the creative reins. Can a … Continue reading →

We interrupt your regularly scheduled next franchise with a Bonus Feature! It is unlikely that anyone believed the Jurassic franchise was dead after the mega success of the almost universally derided Dominion, but the assumption seemed to be that there … Continue reading →

It’s a Betweenisode! Join Nick & Scott as they discuss the end of the Mission: Impossible franchise, what directors we wish we could have seen make entries in the past, reveal our personal rankings, dream about where the franchise could … Continue reading →

Good evening, Mr/Ms. Listener. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to join us… one last time. In the fallout of Dead Reckoning’s muted release, a final (but maybe not so final?) Mission was given a greenlight by … Continue reading →

Good evening, Mr/Ms. Listener. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to join us for the most expensive entry in the entire franchise. After the success of Fallout, another Mission was greenlit quickly with writer/director Christopher McQuarrie returning … Continue reading →

We interrupt your regularly scheduled Impossible Mission with a bonus Scheme! After the unexpectedly contentious response to 2023’s Asteroid City, Anderson returns with a simple, crowd-pleasing comedy about the relationship between an industrialist who has survived multiple assassination attempts and … Continue reading →

Good evening, Mr/Ms. Listener. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to join us for the first direct sequel in the franchise and one of the greatest action movies ever put to film. While Rogue Nation was only … Continue reading →

Good evening, Mr/Ms. Listener. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to join us for the sequel that kickstarted a brand new era for the series going forward. After Ghost Protocol was another success, Tom Cruise turned to … Continue reading →

Good evening, Mr/Ms. Listener. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to join us for the espionage sequel that launched the live action career for an animation director. After Tom Cruise’s deal on M:I 3 created issues for … Continue reading →

Good evening, Mr/Ms. Listener. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to join us for the espionage sequel that started the cinematic career of a television director. The year was 2006, and a sequel to MI2 had spent … Continue reading →

Good evening, Mr/Ms. Listener. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to watch the high octane sequel to the espionage summer blockbuster four years in the making. The year was 2000, and a highly anticipated sequel was released … Continue reading →

Good evening, Mr/Ms. Listener. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to watch every entry in the Mission: Impossible franchise along with the newest mini-series from the podcast FRANCHISOGRAPHY. The year was 1996, and a film based on … Continue reading →

It’s a Betweenisode! Join Nick & Scott as they discuss the Fantastic Four, the current state of the MCU, look ahead toward First Steps, and announce our next mini-series! Next week: A new franchise begins! FRANCHISE POTENTIAL: Sky High (2005) … Continue reading →

Well that didn’t work! After Rise of the Silver Surfer failed to up the ante at the level of a Spider-Man 2 or X2: X-Men United, Marvel and Fox decided to hit the reset button and reboot the adventures of … Continue reading →

This week’s FRANCHISOGRAPHY digs deep into one of the most infamous comic book movies in all of nerd history, a film that manages to whittle down a three part masterpiece of sequential art into a 90-something minute comedy and reduces … Continue reading →

With Marvel’s First Family finally taking their “First Steps” into the MCU, Nick and Scott are marking the occasion by looking back at the previous attempts to bring those iconic Silver Age explorers to the big screen! Reed, Sue, Johnny … Continue reading →

It’s a Betweenisode! Join Nick & Scott as they discuss the state of female filmmaker “authors”, rank the films of Small Talk and Big Kitchens, and announce our next mini-series! Next week: A new franchise begins! FRANCHISE POTENTIAL: Home Again … Continue reading →

SMALL TALK & BIG KITCHENS, our mini-series on the romcoms of Nora Ephron and Nancy Meyers, comes to a close with the feel-good comedy about learning from your elders and falling in platonic love. After It’s Complicated, Nancy Meyers wanted … Continue reading →

Round 1 of this year’s Listener Pick Tournament is over and Nick & Scott are here to discuss where the choices made by our listeners on Discord and Patreon have led us. There were surprising victories and devastating losses, but … Continue reading →

SMALL TALK & BIG KITCHENS, our mini-series on the romcoms of Nora Ephron and Nancy Meyers, continues with a biopic that mixes the lives of two women into complimentary story about transforming yourself into the person you want to become. … Continue reading →

SMALL TALK & BIG KITCHENS, our mini-series on the romcoms of Nora Ephron and Nancy Meyers, continues with the story of a divorcée looking for love in the wrong place. With the financial success of The Holiday, Nancy Meyers basically … Continue reading →

SMALL TALK & BIG KITCHENS, our mini-series on the romcoms of Nora Ephron and Nancy Meyers, continues with the story of two women ready to be the protagonists of their own Christmas romance.  The reaction to Something’s Gotta Give was … Continue reading →

SMALL TALK & BIG KITCHENS, our mini-series on the romcoms of Nora Ephron and Nancy Meyers, continues with the convoluted cinematic sitcom adaptation about a sitcom reboot. After being involved with three flops in a row (2 movies and a … Continue reading →

It’s a Listener Pick Tournament Bonus-ode! With March less than two weeks away, Nick & Scott are joined by Patreon Producer Mark Ybarra to reveal the 32 franchises that were chosen for this year’s Listener Pick Tournament and discuss their … Continue reading →

SMALL TALK & BIG KITCHENS, our mini-series on the romcoms of Nora Ephron and Nancy Meyers, continues with the movie that defied Hollywood’s accepted ageism by focusing on romantic leads over the age of 55. Fresh off of the massive … Continue reading →

SMALL TALK & BIG KITCHENS, our mini-series on the romcoms of Nora Ephron and Nancy Meyers, continues with the movie that became the then-most successful film ever directed by a woman. After her divorce from Charles, Meyers was eager to … Continue reading →

SMALL TALK & BIG KITCHENS, our mini-series on the romcoms of Nora Ephron and Nancy Meyers, continues with the movie that brought the romantic comedy into the age of the internet. With the creative freedom rewarded to her by the … Continue reading →

February is almost here and March is right around the corner… …which means it’s almost time for this year’s Listener Pick Tournament! Join Nick and Scott as they discuss this year’s Tournament rules and regulations! What’s off limits? What’s back … Continue reading →

SMALL TALK & BIG KITCHENS, our mini-series on the romcoms of Nora Ephron and Nancy Meyers, continues with the remake that introduced the world to Lindsay Lohan. With everything she had learned while making Father of the Bride Part II … Continue reading →