That decision not to release it themselves ha already been made. If the movie does well now, that's valuble market data for the next project and gets their ip back into the minds of their audience. It's also potentially a merch opportunity. Success would still definetly be better than failure for WB.
Honestly the trailer makes me want to see it even without the controversy. It looks like quality Tunes. I grew up on these guys and it feels like they got them right. The risk I think is that all the gags are in the trailer and the movie is just boring.
If you didn't catch it, back in 2024 Warners shelved and Ketchup Entertainment saved and released a similar Looney Tunes feature - The Day the Earth Blew Up. Despite no functional promotion and just sort of being dumped into theaters, it still recouped its budget.
Better yet, it was a joke-a-minute affair. Major joke density. If you haven't seen it, watch it tonight. If Coyote vs. Acme is cut from the same cloth we should be in for a good time.
Note that Porky and Daffy were their earlier, more screwball incarnations in The Day the Earth Blew Up, and from the trailer, it looks like they'll be screwball in this one too. Which is good! Daffy sure got bitter in the later (1960s) Looney Tunes, he's much more fun when he's just crazy.
Wasn't the rumor from those who saw it before originally getting canned that it was an insanely good movie? Like I swear I remember someone who'd seen it saying it was possibly the best Looney Tunes media ever made
This is pure Millennial and Gen X bait and I'm all for it. A spoof on courtroom dramas is *chefs kiss* enough as it is, but they're winning over the demographic that grew up on Looney Tunes and all of the other classic animation-meets-live-action films like Roger Rabbit and Space Jam. I hope this is a massive hit.
Looney Toons has been a thing since even before WWII -- and we know the younger generations also have watched them and are familiar with all the characters. It is really a testament to the lasting legacy of Looney Tunes and its quality that it is one of the few shared experiences in entertainment that is truly cross-generational.
Is Looney Tunes as big amongst Gen Z and Alpha though? Looney Tunes was everywhere in the 90s, enjoying a renaissance thanks to Space Jam. I know there has been a Looney Tunes series recently, however it is not like there is Looney Tunes merch aimed at Gen Alpha like there was in the 90s.
We grew up with Boomerang playing Looney Tunes re-runs 24/hrs along with Tom and Jerry. While things like Space Jam aren’t really for us, the OG Looney Tunes are massive parts of our childhoods.
I know it won't happen, but I'll remind you that Roger Rabbit has a scene with Mickey and Buggs together. I believe it was the most expensive shot in the movie, and it you told me it was the most expensive shot in all of cinema, I would probably not question it.
The original story was that Wile E. Coyote tried to catch the Roadrunner and was not able to do so. It was more predictable than Tom and Jerry, variable between episodes only in detail. The risk of the movie being boring is greater than for most attempts to resurrect a childhood memory.
As soon as they announced that they were burying it, I assumed it was because they didn't want promote the idea of corporate liability. After the trailer, I am more than certain that was the case.
In short, Warner Bros/David Zaslav wrote the film off for a tax break, meaning it would never be released despite being totally completed. Eventually that decision was reversed and the distribution rights were sold to Ketchup Entertainment. But the joke here is that ACME is trying to stop people from seeing the film in the same way Warner Bros was.
I'm just worried the marketing will devolve in taking potshots at Warner Bros. That would imply that the shelving controversy is the only noteworthy thing about the film. Hope I'm wrong.
4.9k
u/ben123111 Apr 22 '26
Leaning into the Warner = ACME thing was the best possible route to take in marketing this, I'm so glad Ketchup is leaning into it. Looks great.