After every product made by the Acme Corporation have backfired on Wile E. Coyote in his pursuit of the Road Runner, a down-and-out human attorney represents Wile E. in his lawsuit to sue Acme. A growing friendship between Wile E. Coyote and his lawyer motivates their determination to win the court case, as it pits them against the intimidating boss of Wile E.’s lawyer’s former law firm, who now represents Acme.
Sadly, real life isn’t a cartoon; live-action or otherwise.
Warner Bros. stunned “Coyote vs. Acme” producer Chris DeFaria with a call in early January. A studio executive declared Warner Bros. wanted to “close the books” on the live-action/animated hybrid starring Will Forte and the “Looney Tunes” characters. On February 9, 2024, TheWrap reported that Warner Bros. Discovery had rejected bids from Netflix, Amazon, and Paramount. The company sought $75-$80 million to sell the film, but no distributors matched their offer, and Warner Bros. Discovery rejected counterbids. The company has considered deleting the film before its fourth earnings call on February 23, 2024, and claiming it as a tax loss.
RELATED: DC Animated Projects Might Be Getting The Axe As Warner Bros. Restructuring Continues
The November 9th announcement of the cancellation sparked outrage. Friends and family had already seen a screening, fueling public demands to save the acclaimed film; “What was so exciting was that it felt like the film captured the voice of the Looney Tunes that we love in a way none of the other feature versions have ever done,” director Paul Scheer exclaimed.
Responding to the hubbub, Warner Bros. backtracked, giving the “Coyote vs. Acme” filmmakers a chance to shop it around. Months later, with Warner Bros. Discovery’s earnings call looming, the studio’s patience has apparently expired. Insiders feel Warner Bros. will use the quarter’s end to erase “Coyote vs. Acme” from the books. The movie faces worse than painted tunnels and falling anvils — a movie studio’s balance sheet.
RELATED: Tim Burton’s ‘Attack of the 50-Foot Woman’ Remake: Warner Bros. Project with Gillian Flynn Script
After the stay of execution, Netflix, Amazon and Paramount screened the well-received “Coyote vs. Acme.” Paramount even proposed a theatrical release. But Warner Bros. wanted $75-$80 million, refusing counteroffers. Actor Eric Bauza optimistically said in December, “See ya in 2024!” But privately, Warner Bros. was tightening the noose.
Shockingly, the four Warner Bros. Discovery executives deciding “Coyote vs. Acme’s” fate — CEOs Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy, Animation president Bill Damaschke, and CEO David Zaslav — never saw the finished film. De Luca and Abdy viewed an early cut, and Damaschke saw a preview. With “Coyote vs. Acme” greenlit under a previous regime, only executive Jesse Ehrman worked on the well-testing movie. Yet these executives who trumpet a filmmaker-first approach were apparently ready to erase a film they’d never watched.
When Warner Bros. deleted the $90 million “Batgirl”, despite millions of dollars and years of time exhausted, disappearing finished films became “an acceptable means of dealing with a problem.” With no idea what to do with “Coyote vs. Acme,” they took that option, despite consistently great audience scores.
“The studio executives, though not in their nature to cancel a movie, are getting a free pass from the top down to avoid any risk, and that’s being taken advantage of, as unhealthy as it is,” said one source with knowledge on the Coyote vs. Acme situation.
Proclaiming filmmakers could take “Coyote vs. Acme” elsewhere seemed dubious. A production source remembers thinking Warner Bros. might “run out the clock.” Throughout, Warner Bros. refused specifics on proposed deals to the filmmakers. Well-meaning champions couldn’t force communication. Warner Bros. insisted on recouping costs plus fees, rejecting offers.
\With the studio writing off an estimated $30 million of the $70 million production, investigations are also being considered as cancelling a multi-million dollar movie that investors paid for does have a hint of tax fraud to it. As far as we are aware, the picture write-down was applied to the most recent Q3. “The studio executives, though not in their nature to cancel a movie, are getting a free pass from the top down to avoid any risk, and that’s being taken advantage of, as unhealthy as it is,” said one source with knowledge on the Coyote vs. Acme situation.
Along with the set pieces from the original Looney Tunes cartoons, the creative team acknowledged Who Framed Roger Rabbit as a source for inspiration for the film’s seamless live-action interaction with the animated characters. Notable references included the setting of the movie in Albuquerque, which was famously cited by Bugs Bunny, and the realization of Road Runner’s desert habitat.
Ninety days later, the hashtag #SaveCoyoteVsAcme is still trending, and Warner Bros.’s poor decision based on gloomy quarterly forecasts, much like the Acme products that never work as advertised, seems like it will never end.
NEXT: Jonathan Majors Accused Of Abuse AGAIN, After Filing To Get Guilty Verdict Set Aside
Killing Hollywood’s ability to get a ‘tax refund’ on stuff they think won’t make enough money to suit them?
Sounds like a way forward, but certainly not an end to shady money laundering in Tinsel Town.
A “good start” is better than nothing.
If it breaks the studios, that leaves the audience not one penny poorer for it.