DIRECT DVDS? JUST BRING IT ON STUDIOS BYPASS THEATER RELEASES BUT NOT PROFITS.

Byline: GREG HERNANDEZ Staff Writer

UNIVERSAL CITY -- What do you do if you have a popular movie franchise that seems worth continuing but maybe isn't quite worth pulling out all the stops for with a theatrical release?

If you're Universal Studios Home Entertainment, you make a ``DVD original'' and start counting the money.

Universal's cheerleading comedy, ``Bring It On: All Or Nothing,'' sold 750,000 copies in its first week and generated $12 million in consumer spending, the studio said Wednesday. It is the second DVD sequel to the studio's 2000 hit ``Bring it On,'' which starred Kirsten Dunst.

``This is one of those classic cases where it makes all the sense in the world to create a new DVD original,'' said Craig Kornblau, president of Universal Studios Home Entertainment. ``Clearly there is intense interest in cheerleading.''

This follows Universal's successful continuation of its ``American Pie'' franchise last December by selling 1 million first-week copies of ``American Pie Presents: Band Camp.''

``Band Camp'' had the biggest first-week sales of any live-action DVD original, while ``All or Nothing'' had the second-biggest.

In December, the studio will release ``American Pie Presents: Naked Mile'' set on the University of Michigan campus and featuring a cousin of the character of Steve Stifler created by Seann William Scott in the trilogy of theatrical ``American Pie'' films.

``It's all about creating a line of product that is of theatrical level quality based on properties that have tremendous demand,'' Kornblau said.

Disney has had bigger opening with animated DVD originals that are sequels to such hits as ``Lilo & Stitch'' and ``The Lion King.'' Disney also bypassed theatrical releases for its sequels to ``Inspector Gadget,'' ``101 Dalmations,'' ``Aladdin,'' ``Cinderella,'' ``Bambi,'' and ``Lady and the Tramp.''

Universal has also succeeded mightily in animation with its more than a dozen ``Land Before Time'' movies, which have been huge sellers.

``That was the beginning for us,'' Kornblau said. ``We looked at that success and thought, `Why can't we do that with the non-family audience.''

The studio's first DVD original live-action effort was ``Bring it On Again'' in 2004, which sold 500,000 in its first seven days.

That was followed by a prequel to 1993's ``Carlito's Way,'' which starred Oscar winners Al Pacino and Sean Penn. ``Carlito's Way: Rise to Power'' was made for $9 million and starred Jay Hernandez, Mario Van Peebles and Sean ``P. Diddy'' Combs.

``When Universal gets a franchise title where they don't feel it's worth $15 million to $20 million to launch with a national theatrical run, they just pocket the money and do it direct-to-DVD,'' observed Ralph Tribbey, editor of the industry newsletter DVD Release Report. ``They are trading on a brand that has already been created.''

Tribbey said that despite Universal's current success, the actual number of DVD originals has been gradually decreasing since 2000 when the number of titles peaked at 1,406. Last year, the number of titles was down to 1,248.

Part of the reason for the reduction, according to Tribbey, is that more smaller films once fated for only a DVD release are now enjoying at least brief runs in theaters. This is possible because of the digital format that eliminates the expensive print process.

Kornblau said that for a $24 billion a year industry, there is a surprisingly small amount of product made specifically for the DVD market.

But there are plenty of high-profile titles that don't star DVD original perennials Steven Seagal and Jean-Claude Van Damme.

They include ``Hollow Man II'' starring Christian Slater, a sequel to the 1999 film starring Kevin Bacon.

Still, some movies, such as Justin Timberlake's ``Edison Force'' co-starring Oscar winners Morgan Freeman and Kevin Spacey, were intended for theaters but went straight to DVD instead.

``It used to be if you made a film and couldn't get theatrical release, it pretty much disappeared,'' he said. ``That isn't the case anymore.''

greg.hernandez(at)dailynews.com

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(1 -- 2 -- color) ``Bring It On: All Or Nothing,'' starring Solange Knowles-Smith, above center, and Hayden Panettiere, below center, sold 750,000 copies in its first week. Movies that went ``straight to video'' were once considered failures, but studios are now finding success with some live-action and animated DVD originals.

Universal Studios Home Entertainment