(
)
Disney boss Bob Iger is weighing the future of Touchstone Pictures — the film label created to house edgier fare — as he looks to boost the company’s lagging film division, The Post has learned.
Disney is in the early stages of considering options for Touchstone, including a possible sale of the film imprint, one source told The Post.
In the past, Touchstone produced such iconic movies as “Pretty Woman” but has more recently served as a distribution pipeline for Steven Spielberg’s DreamWorks Studio, whose films include “The Help” and “War Horse.”
The discussion over Touchstone’s fate follows a broad shake-up of Disney’s film division by studio chief Rich Ross, who has been cutting costs and streamlining operations since he came on board in 2009. Like the rest of Hollywood, Ross is trying to wring more profits from the film unit in an era of declining DVD sales and movie attendance.
Revenue at Disney’s film division fell 5 percent to $6.4 billion in the fiscal year ended October, while operating income fell 11 percent to $618 million.
Like the other major studios, Disney produces and distributes films under various brands, including Walt Disney Pictures, Pixar Animation Studios, Touchstone Pictures and Hollywood Pictures.
“There are simply too many labels and it wouldn’t surprise me if studios wanted to rationalize the number of brands,” said Marshall Sonenshine, a partner at investment bank Sonenshine Partners.
A spokeswoman for Disney declined to comment on a potential sale of Touchstone.
If Disney chooses to pursue that path, it would be the second major movie asset that it has unloaded in recent months.
Disney sold Miramax, the independent studio started by Harvey and Bob Weinstein, for $663 million to Colony Capital in December 2010.
Touchstone was formed in 1984 to allow Disney to release more adult-oriented movies that didn’t fit with the squeaky clean Mouse House, but it came close to being disbanded when the company began shifting popular films such as “Pirates of the Caribbean” to its Disney brand.
In 2009, Touchstone was given a second life as a distribution pipeline for Spielberg’s DreamWorks. Under the deal, Touchstone agreed to distribute 30 DreamWorks films over five years in exchange for at least an 8 percent cut of the revenue.
Disney hoped that working with DreamWorks would allow it to bring more family friendly films to market that it could exploit across its various entertainment properties, including cable channels and theme parks.
Disney has spent some $153 million financing DreamWorks productions and has an agreement to commit an additional $90 million if the Spielberg firm is able to obtain other equity funding.
While “War Horse” has received critical acclaim, it has had only modest success at the box office, ringing up $51 million since its Dec. 25 opening.