Warner Bros. Shuts Down WIP and Picturehouse

Warner Independent Pictures and Picturehouse are no more. Warner Bros. ended months of speculation Thursday by shutting down the two divisions, reports Variety. The closings — which caught Hollywood and many inside each division off-guard — will eliminate more than 70 positions over the next few months.

The dramatic exit from the specialty biz continues Time Warner chief exec Jeff Bewkes’ cost-cutting run and underscores the pressure on Warner Bros. to show financial discipline. Most observers expected a consolidation of the two units, with the main question being who would manage the single shop.

“With New Line now a key part of Warner Bros., we’re able to handle films across the entire spectrum of genres and budgets without overlapping production, marketing and distribution infrastructures,” said Alan Horn, Warner’s president and chief operating officer. “After much painstaking analysis, this was a difficult decision to make, but it reflects the reality of a changing marketplace and our need to prudently run our businesses with increased efficiencies.”

Both units will keep enough people employed to handle their remaining handful of releases before finally closing their doors in the fall. Picturehouse has Mongol and Kit Kittredge: An American Girl schedule for release in June and The Women in September. Warner Independent Pictures is due to put out Towelhead in August and Slumdog Millionaire in November.