Disney

The studio has always had the industry’s best brand, but never has it been more opportunistic about exploiting its strengths. Under Cook’s leadership, the studio has expanded the Disney nameplate to include everything from sports comedies “Game Plan”) to Jerry Bruckheimer extravaganzas (“National Treasure: Book of Secrets”).

The studio production cutback had its skeptics — myself included — but Disney had four of the year’s 15 top-grossing films, led by a “Pirates of the Caribbean” sequel that made nearly $1 billion worldwide. In part because it released so few films, it generally kept quality high, earning critical accolades with Pixar’s “Ratatouille” and “Enchanted,” made by Kevin Lima, who’s been at Disney as an animator and director for 20 years.

Performance: A

Quality: B+

Overall: A-

(Disney Enterprises / Pixar Animation)