Remember when as the new CEO of Warner Bros., David Zaslav, went on a spree of shelving completed movies like Batgirl, Scoob! Holiday Haunt and Coyote vs. Acme all for tax write-offs, only the backlash for canning Coyote vs. Acme got so loud that he walked it back by saying he’d entertain buyout offers from other studios, but he was just toying with us and re-shelved the film anyway even though we finally learned that he hadn’t even seen the movie? Well Will Forte remembers! He’s damn proud of the movie he made where he got to play Wile E. Coyote’s lawyer. Forte is doing press for a new Netflix comedy with Amy Schumer, Kinda Pregnant, and an interviewer from MovieWeb asked Forte how he feels about his other film being scrapped (twice). More than a year later and Forte is still upset by the miscarriage of justice:
“My thoughts were that it’s f–king bullsh-t,” cast member Forte told MovieWeb in a new interview. “It is such a delightful movie. It deserves so much better than it got. I can’t tell you possibly why the decision was made to not release it. But it makes my blood boil.”
“Thank you for asking me about it because I like talking about the movie because I don’t want people to forget what [Warner Bros.] did to this,” he continued. “I appreciate them letting us make it, but don’t let us make this thing that we fall in love with and then not show it. I would understand if the thing sucked, but it’s really good. Maybe somehow we get to see it at some point. I hope people do. I was really proud of it.”
“Coyote vs. Acme” was originally slated for release on July 21, 2023 before Warner Bros. removed it from its release schedule and replaced it with “Barbie.” The studio announced at the time that it had no plans to ever release the movie, a $70 million live action-animation hybrid also starring John Cena and Lana Condor. Forte starred in the movie as Wile E. Coyote’s lawyer. The screenplay was written by “May December” scribe Samy Burch.
Four months after Warner Bros. shelved “Coyote vs. Acme,” Forte took to Instagram and posted a note to the film’s cast and crew in which he wrote: “When I first heard that our movie was getting ‘deleted,’ I hadn’t seen it yet. So I was thinking what everyone else must have been thinking: this thing must be a hunk of junk. But then I saw it. And it’s incredible.”
“Look, when it comes to Hollywood business stuff, I don’t know sh-t about sh-t. Even when a movie tests very well (like ours), there’s no guarantee that it’s gonna be a hit,” he added. “And at the end of the day, the people who paid for this movie can obviously do whatever they want with it. It doesn’t mean I have to like it (I f–king hate it). Or agree with it. And it doesn’t mean that this movie is anything less than magnificent.”
I’m no accountant, but it still seems like utter insanity to have a finished film that’s gone through post-production and audience testing, and then not release it. This article says Coyote vs. Acme cost $70 million to make, and the tax write-off was only for $30 million. Why not give it a chance at the box office? I’d think it would hit the sweet spot of animation for the kids, and nostalgia for the adults. Plus I hear that John Cena fella is supposedly a big draw… Anyway, I stand in solidarity with Will Forte’s righteous indignation!
And sending Coyote vs. Acme off a southwestern desert cliff isn’t the only f–kery Zaslav’s WB has been up to when it comes to Looney Tunes. If you recall, HBO Max kicked off 2023 by removing half of the classic cartoon catalog from the streamer. Not only that, but it was definitely the better half that was taken down — the 1950-60s episodes (seasons 16-31), where Bugs Bunny had outings as a toreador and opera drag queen. Then they threatened to get rid of ALL the Looney Tunes, and that was the last straw for Bugs & Co’s adoring public, so seasons 1-15 stayed. Well, because I’m a dedicated investigative reporter, I simply had to go through season-by-season on Max to see the current state of affairs… and sufferin’ succotash is it a hot mess! It purports to have all 31 seasons, but some only have a few episodes. (And they list the episode number, so it’s plainly obvious entries are missing.) And as for the later years being restored, alls I can say is Zaslav must be making decisions again without having seen the material. Still no What’s Opera, Doc? !!! To quote Daffy Duck, “What a way to run a railroad!”
photos credit: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Netflix, Scott Yamano/Netflix, Maria Laura Antonelli/AGF Foto/Avalon, Getty
This coyote movie may be a cinematic masterpiece for all I know, but Kinda Pregnant was one of the worst movies I’ve ever had the displeasure of watching, so I’ll take his opinion with a grain of salt.